After the Fall

by Sapidus3

First published 4th of January, 2015

Everyone is dead. She doesn't know who is responsible, just that somepony activated the ultimate weapon. Only four ponies survived and now try to find meaning in the great wasteland. Celestia will just be happy if she can find a way to heal Twilight.

Everyone is dead. She doesn't know who is responsible, just that somepony activated the ultimate weapon. Only four ponies survived and now try to find meaning in the great wasteland. Celestia will just be happy if she can find a way to heal Twilight.

Chapter One - Lunch

Whirlwinds of dust rose up and fell back to the ground as the wind surged erratically. The tiny bits of dirt and pebbles kicked up in the gale were harsh against her skin. Celestia had lived through far worse, but worried for her companion. Celestia did not think the other alicorn would do anything to shield her eyes.

Straining herself the former sovereign ruler of Equestria pulled dregs of magic into her horn and formed a barrier to keep the dust and sand out. Her shoulders slumped at the effort of performing a task that was once so simple.

She gingerly picked her way through the shattered rubble of the ruined city. Her careful steps were not out of any concern for sharp pieces of stone and splinters of wood or even the shards of glass. Celestia wished to take care if any relic of her ponies long gone could be found underhoof. So many things had been destroyed, and she did not want to be responsible for any more.

Celestia knew that there was much to find and wanted to recover as much as possible. However, somewhere the charred crystal stump of a once great, but now dead, tree was hiding. Perhaps she did not want to find everything.

Luna had her opinion, of course. Officially Celestia’s stance was in favor of finding whatever remnants they could find. However, she suspected that the ruins of the old crystal palace would be too much too soon. Celestia needed to be more delicate in her handling of the past than she was in even her steps. She was not quite certain what she was searching for or what would be the key, but was not willing to risk accidentally breaking whatever it was before she found it.

Each day was a near duplicate of the day before. Wandering through desolation with only a superficial goal, and no real long term plan. For as long as she could remember Celestia had always had a plan, but it had all unraveled so quickly.

Celestia had been outside all day, and without Cloudsdale, her “summer” sun was particularly brutal. She sent out a pulse of magic to dim the sun slightly, only a minor abuse of her station, and wiped the sweat from her brow. Her attunement to the sun was one of the few things that had not been affected, and adjusting the brightness had actually been easier than creating her dust barrier.

So far she had not found anything of interest, but her twin hearts had not really been in the search today.

She looked over at the mostly intact ruins across the street. The main awning was gone, but above where it once had been was remnants of a sign, “-ville Central Ba-.” Celestia tended to avoid banks. Their vaults tended to be filled with nothing but now worthless coins and gems. However, their sturdy construction meant that many of them had survived the fall in reasonable condition. Eyeing it up, she decided that it would make an excellent place to find a midday respite from the sun. They would search for a little while longer, and then she would call a break.

The former princess of Equestria continued to shuffle through the stones looking for anything of value. When she found the a partial tea set, Celestia opened her saddle bag and packed it in along with some scraps of newspaper for protection. Somehow the tea set had made it through everything with only a few chips. It was certainly not the nicest set she had come across since she had set out on her mission, but it reminded her of the one that use to be in her study. Hopefully, it would do the same for her companion.

If only they had tea.

Celestia shook her her head. She had tea of course. The metal tins inside her saddle bag carried that precious cargo. She had made that find before they had even made it outside of Canterlot. She just needed water to actually make the tea.

Celestia snorted in frustration. With each passing day, she was growing more convinced that Luna had the right of things. Perhaps they should simply hide themselves away in Luna’s insane castle and try to pretend as if nothing had happened. Attempting to discover items that could spark memories was almost glacial in its success.

Of course there had been success, small as they had been, and Celestia was willing to spend centuries sorting through rubble if it meant she could help her special somepony.

As she continued sorting through the rubble her eyes spotted something new.

“Oh! A chess set.”

Chess could work. Celestia gazed back at her silent companion and then at the board. They had spent many hours out on the veranda playing. She could just barely see the corner of the black and white checkerboard peaking out from underneath a fallen support beam. Her golden aura enveloped the large wooden crossbeam, but as she felt another drop of sweat moving down her brow, Celestia let her magic dissipate. She lowered her head and pressed it against the beam and began pushing it forward.

With a soft thud it rolled over onto its side. She looked down at her work. It was still an adjustment doing things by hoof that she would once use magic.

Pawing through the now exposed rubble, Celestia let out a sigh. The board was somehow intact, if damaged, but most of the pieces were missing.

“It looks like we just have a rook, two bishops, and five pawns… Maybe the others are somewhere around here.”

She craned her head upwards as a large shadow passed over the ground and saw Luna circling around them like a vulture. Each pass tightened the circle and brought her sister lower to the ground.

“I asked her to stop doing that”, Celestia mumbled more to herself than anything else. “I wonder what brings her by during the day?”

As Luna closed the distance, Celestia narrowed her eyes and spotted what she was fairly certain was a brown picnic basket being carried by her sister. She stood up straight and could not help but smile.

“If she is going to bring food, she can circle around all she wants,” and in a louder voice, Celestia added, “Twilight, it looks Luna has brought us lunch.”

There was no response, but Celestia turned around to look at the younger alicorn. Twilight had been trailing behind her, as she did every day, and was now sitting down while staring up at Luna. Twilight’s neck made slow circles as she tracked the darker alicorn through the sky with over exaggerated movements. The movement seemed reflexive more than anything else, but at least she was responding to the stimuli.

Celestia felt her words catch in her throat. At some point Twilight must have found a doll, because now she clutched the dirty thing to her chest with one leg. It was hard to tell with all of the grime, but Celestia felt that it looked somewhat like Twilight’s old Smarty Pants doll. She wondered if that was why her former student had grabbed the thing.

The sight alone made the entire morning worthwhile. They were making progress. Celestia had to believe that.

“Twilight, aren’t you excited that we are going to get to eat? I think the last time was two weeks ago when Luna brought by that strange fungus.”

Celestia was not expecting a response, not truly. She hoped that speaking would keep her student’s mind active and keep her from being lonely, but she spoke to Twilight more out of habit than anything else. Every so often she they had good days and could have conversations, or at least things that passed for conversations. Most of the time it was simply the occasional comment, but they had ceased to surprise her when they came.

“Cryptococcus neoformans. It was a radiological fungus much like the ones found in the Gallobyl disaster site when ponies finally felt it safe enough to investigate. It’s managed to live by feeding off the radiation that killed everything else.”

Celestia felt her smile melt from her face. She had not known that about their meal. There were no health concerns of course, but it seemed wrong somehow. Or maybe it was just sad. Celestia did not think she would share the revelation with Luna.

“Come Twilight, let’s see if that bank is safe to go in while Luna is landing. She knows that I saw her basket and is going to draw this out, so we have time. It will be nice to eat out of this sun.”

As they walked across the street towards the bank entrance, a hot breeze blew a scrap of paper against her leg. Looking down, she saw a bit of newspaper headline, “Princess Luna to Oversee Peace Talks.” Celestia lifted her leg and let the paper continue its lazy path down the road. The newspaper wouldn’t help Twilight, and she didn’t want Luna to accidently read the headline.

Her sister still blamed herself. Even though Celestia secretly wondered what would have happened had Luna made it to the talks on time, she doubted things would have ended any differently. She could not count the number of times she had tried to convince Luna of that fact during their dream conversations.

Celestia would never admit it out loud, or even in her dreams with Luna, but personally she felt Twilight’s little democracy experiment was to blame. Individually ponies had been able to aspire to such greatness, but as a herd they would drop down to the least common denominator. Celestia had designed the old monarch-centered system with that simple fact in mind. However, Twilight’s proposal had seemed so good on paper. Instead their ponies threw it all away.

Celestia glanced at Twilight walking by her side. She did not blame her student.

Once they reached the entrance to the bank, Celestia surrounded the entire building with her telekinesis and poked and prodded. Even simple telekinesis was difficult in most places and impossible in others, but the expenditure of energy was worth it. Even if the ceiling came down on them, they were in no real danger, but she had become fed up with having to dig herself and Twilight out of collapsed ruins. It was bad enough digging around when not buried alive. As she finished satisfying herself that they could safely eat inside, she heard hooves clopping on the pavement behind them.

“Sisters! I bring a great bounty for us to feast on.”

Celestia was about to take a jab at her sister’s word choice when she saw the basket. It was indeed a bounty.

“Is that grass? Real grass? And not that blighted stuff that grows in the waste! And… Tell me that’s a pitcher of water and I’m not just dreaming.”

“I told you my sister. I bring a bounty for us to share. Let’s find a nice place to sit out of your accursed sun, and I will tell you of my find.”

“My sun is not that bad.”

“I’ve been baking in my coat.”

“Perhaps you should have a lighter color coat.” Celestia flipped her mane and stuck her tongue at her younger sister.

Sometimes the strangeness of it all made Celestia’s head spin. Despite Twilight’s greatest efforts, and all of the “bonding slumber parties” her protege over the years forced them into over the years, Celestia’s relationship with her sister had never really gotten over Luna’s time as Nightmare Moon. There was simply too much hurt on both sides of things.

However, once they had gotten over the shock of the world ending, it had been like they were young again. They had all even played a game of hide and seek a few days ago, even though Twilight did not really seem to get the “hide” part of the game and just stood in the middle of an intersection for the duration of the game. More than ever, her sister Luna was well and truly returned to her.

It was not long before they were all sitting around in a circle as Luna served each of them a plate of grass and a teacup of water. At first Celestia removed one of the tins of tea from her bag, but as she looked at the cup of water, she changed her mind. They had found a hoveful of bottles of water now and again, but she and Luna had agreed to save them. The idea of a fresh cup of water was almost intoxicating at the moment. She looked at the grass on her plate. Before the fall, she would have called it sickly, and in reality it was a pale green and scraggly. However, there were no diseased blotches, and pale green was still green.

She leaned over with her muzzle and bit up a mouthful. The sensation of taste exploded on her tongue and Celestia had to wrestle with a desire to gobble everything up or to savor the flavor. A moan from Luna caused her to swallow.

“Truly sister, you cannot fathom the temptation I wrestled with not to eat this bounty before arriving.”

Celestia smiled at her sister. Luna always made the same joke whenever she found food.

“Is there no more of it then?”

“Neigh, this is not all there was. I found an entire field in a small valley up north, but I was worried about taking too much. I know not why, but it seems the earth is beginning to recover there. It is also where I found the water. There is a natural spring, and somehow the rock is filtering the water.”

“A combination of small rocks, gravel, and sand can create a natural filtration system. Especially if charcoal from charred and dead plant life is mixed in.” Twilight recited in a monotone.

Both Celestia and Luna looked to the younger alicorn, and Celestia saw that Twilight had not begun eating and was staring down at the grass on her plate. With unsteady telekinesis she pulled a fork from her saddle bag. Grabbing a bit of the grass on the fork she levitated it towards Twilight’s mouth.

“Come on Twilight. Try some of this grass that Luna brought us. It’s really lovely.”

Twilight leaned forward and took a bite, chewed and swallowed. Celestia felt a pressure on the fork and released her telekinesis, allowing Twilight to continue to eat by herself.

“How has she been?”

“Please, don’t talk like she can’t hear or understand you.”

Luna sighed, but complied, “Twilight, how have you been?”

Twilight did not even look up from her plate, but simply took another forkful of grass.

“She’s…. Yesterday wasn’t great.”

“I could tell as much from her dreams. With only the four of us, I see much at night. I meant today.”

“Today has been a good day, hasn’t it Twilight?” Celestia paused for a response that never came, “Twilight found a nice little doll just a little while before you came. I’m going to be keeping an eye open for some needle and thread so I can fix it up for her. Do you want to tell Luna about your doll at all?”

Luna glanced at the lump of cloth and stuffing next to Twilight before replying, “Perhaps I can procure some more water from the spring to clean her doll off. I don’t wish to risk damaging a healing ecosystem by over harvesting it, but I think it could spare that much for one such as Twilight.”

Celestia smiled at her sister, but could not help but feel some of the weariness that Luna wore on her face. “That sounds lovely.”

“I spoke with our niece last night.”

“Cadence? It’s been some time since she let you in her dreams.”

“Neigh, in pony. She sought me out as I soared through the night.”

“Is everything alright?”

“She says… She says that she can sense love over the horizon. She is convinced that there are survivors. She is going to… search for them. Cadence has welcomed me to keep tabs on her dreams while she is gone, but that we should not expect her back for some time. She expects her journey to be long.”

“She sensed-” Celestia was cut off by Twilight.

“The magical ley lines covered the globe. Including tributaries and flow bleed they possessed a ninety nine point eight percent planetary coverage. The odds of a living pony surviving the Line Burn is negligible.”

“Ahh yes… I am afraid I agree with Twilight. Is Cadence certain?”

“She claims she is. For myself, I believe our niece is only chasing shadows. I suspect that your love for your dear student is not enough to sustain her.”

Celestia was proud that the blush on her face was only a minor one. Years ago Cadence’s meddling in her relationship, or rather non-relationship, with Twilight had been her greatest annoyance. The number of times the annoying pink alicorn had hinted that Twilight would perhaps be interested in a threesome between Celestia, Luna, and herself had been enough to drive her mad. However, it had been months since Cadence’s had last visited.

She understood. It was hard seeing what had become of Twilight, and a shameful part of her wanted to follow Cadence and leave her former student behind. But Celestia still believed that she could help heal Twilight and would do everything in her power to do so. Unfortunately, it meant that she had abandoned Cadence to her self imposed isolation.

Celestia hesitated to ask her next question, “Do you plan on accompanying her?”

“I… I know that it is not good for her to be on her own. However, I do not wish to leave you alone either sister.”

Celestia glared at Luna. “I wouldn’t be alone. Twilight and I will be fine. I’m worried about Cadence. She has become more and more reclusive with each passing month.”

“We are dealing with things in our own way… I offered to travel with her, but I am afraid it was half hearted. I do not believe she wished me to come with her any way. However, with Cadence on her own little adventure, it will give me more time to spend with you... And Twilight.”

“And more time to work on your castle.”

“Yes. I do think you and Twilight would like it. I’m even working on building an observatory.”

Celestia bit her lip in contemplation. The idea of such luxury was nice, but Twilight did not need to be isolated from the world. She needed to face and overcome her pain.

“Have you heard from Discord at all?”

“I have not seen hide nor tail of that selfish trouble maker. With a flick of his fingers he could make this all go away.”

“I wish I could tell you why he does not help.”

“He’s not able to.” Celestia and Luna both looked at Twilight in surprise, and waited in expectation for more to come.

“Twilight, do you think you could elaborate for Luna and me?”

Just as Luna snorted in exasperation, Twilight completed her thought. “He calls himself the Spirit of Chaos, but that’s not really right. His manifestations obey rules and operate in a predictable, logical manner. Perhaps they are different rules than what we are used to, but he isn’t really chaotic. He isn’t exactly unharmonious either. More alien than anything else. But it’s all about…”

Finally Luna chimed in, “All about what Twilight?”

“It’s all about chaos theory, which really has nothing to do with chaos as most ponies understand it. Really, it's about small things all adding up to large effects.”

“Twilight, I’m not really certain I follow.” Secretly Celestia was more concerned with what had sparked this change in Twilight. She kept a mental list of things that seemed to precede Twilight’s moments of near lucidity in an attempt to unlock the secret to healing her former student. She tried to remember if they had discussed Discord in front of Twilight before.

“At one point… I spent some time trying to figure out his magic. He’s not all powerful… He manipulates quantum probability and random chance. Weather patterns, biological mutations, quantum foam...He can cause things to spontaneously or rapidly change and transmogrify, but he can’t make something from nothing.”

“Twilight, I’ve seen him-” started Celestia.

“He has very good showmanship. If there were still ponies alive, he could twist and transform their bodies however he wished. But he can’t heal the blight. Its radiological properties are non-nuclear in nature. If it had a half-life he could twist things to speed it up and clean everything up at the very least. But it doesn’t work that way. The magic that… It’s a set duration. A fixed time, with no room for chance. Death for a thousand years.”

“How do you know that?” asked Luna.

“Because I designed it.”

Celestia was not sure if it was herself or Luna who gasped and who asked the follow up question, “What do you mean?” however Twilight had returned to staring at her plate.

“Sister, what did your student mean?”

“I’m… I don’t think she meant it the way it sounded. Or if she did, I don’t think she is remembering things right. I know what her schedule was like before the fall and how she was spending her time. She wasn’t working on anything like… She wasn’t keeping anything like that a secret from me.”

“Sister do you think we could have a word in private.”

Celestia did not know if she should frown. On the one hoof Luna was not acting like Twilight was not there, on the other hoof she was being incredibly rude.

“Twilight, do you mind if I speak with Luna for a moment?”

No response came as the younger alicorn continued to stare at her plate in silence. Celestia stood up and followed Luna out of the bank.

“Sister. I reluctantly agreed with your reasoning back when thou first proposed it, but I am afraid I must now object. Twilight shows no signs of improving.”

“Luna, she just needs-”

“Celestia, you are not the only one who cares for your student. Her injuries have driven Cadence from us, and you must be open to the possibility that Twilight will not be able to overcome her mental trauma.”

“She is stronger than you think. Every challenge that I have ever put in her way, she has triumphed over.” Even as she spoke a voice in the back of Celestia’s head was calling herself a liar. “Twilight just needs some more time to process what has happened.”

“I… As always, I will defer to your judgment. But know that I think subjecting Twilight to this wasteland has borne all the fruit that it will. Further keeping her here is just prolonging her suffering.”

Celestia headed back to the bank interior and paused at the door. Twilight was sitting inside the dark room just as she had been when they left. The alicorn was bathed in a dull magenta glow as she held her fork in a telekinetic field, studying the piece of metal.

“So will you be staying with us for the rest of the day? I think I figured out where the library used to be, and with your help we can unearth some books. Twilight likes it when I read to her at night.”

“She doesn’t even-”

Celestia shot Luna another nasty glare, “She likes it when I read to her.” Luna voiced no further objection.

Celestia trotted over to Twilight and rubbed her student’s muzzle with magic while whispering to her former student, “Twilight, you have a bit of grass on your face.”

Twilight just continued to stare at the fork and Celestia suppressed a shudder as tears threatened to spill out.

+++

Princess Twilight Sparkle’s New Deal

In a move that shocked all assembled, Princess Twilight Sparkle presented a stunning new vision for Equestria’s future before both the upper and lower councils.

“For as long as anypony can remember Equestria has been led by our oligarchy. We have done an excellent job, and one that I am quite proud to have been part of. Equestria has weathered many challenges, and will be sure to weather many more.” Said Twilight Sparkle.

Later in her presentation, “However, if friendship has taught me anything, it’s that we all need to do our part, but that we all deserve a say. Good ideas can come from the place you least expect, and there is no reason why every Equestrian should not get a chance to help guide Equestria’s future.”

When asked what this new form of government would be called, our youngest princess simply had this to say. “It’s called Democracy.” (See Pg. 13 for more details on what this Democracy would look like).

Princess Celestia who was in attendance had this to say about her former student’s plan...

Author's Notes:

This is just a little something that I've been working on.

Updates will be unpredictable until I am done with Equestria's Twilight, as that will be taking priority.

Chapter Two - Camp

After packing their dishes back into her saddle bags, Celestia, Luna, and Twilight ventured back into the ruined city. Celestia was happy to see that Twilight was following them without prodding, but after her earlier conversation with Luna could not help but wonder how much of the behavior was simply reflexive.

An image kept popping back into her mind. Twilight sitting alone in the remnants of a town square. Nopony else for hundreds of miles, and yet Twilight just continued to sit there. Years passed and the ruins turned to gravel, and still Twilight did not move. Celestia hated to think what would happen if she gave up on her former student. Neither hunger, age, nor the elements would ever take her pupil. Twilight would just become a fixture of the landscape.

Yet, in some ways retreating to Luna’s insane castle seemed even worse. A pony deserved to have the truth, even if it was a hard truth. If everything was perfect and happy, a pony would have no chance to grow and develop. Celestia just wanted what was best for Twilight.

“So this is where they built their new library after Twilight’s tree exploded?”

“Yes, I think so. If I have my bearings right that is. Even if the city was intact, it’s been so many years, and I never knew the place as well as Twilight. The decision to build it came after the mayor decided that they needed their own library independent of the “Royal” library in Twilight’s summer palace. "

Celestia turned and saw her sister smiling and arched an eyebrow.

“Oh, we were just remembering when little Twilight came to the Night Court concerned about the ramifications of her new crystal palace.”

“Yes, I remember you telling me about that. What was it you were worried about Twilight? That your destiny might be to secede from Equestria.” Celestia smiled at Twilight.

“Luckily we were able to put that to rest and reassure your student.”

“I have an idea. I’m reasonably confident that the library is buried beneath this pile of rocks somewhere. Twilight, Luna, let’s have a game. The first pony to find a book wins.”

“Thou, art so on sister.”

“But we have to be careful!” Celestia shot her hoof out towards Luna before her sister had a chance to direct any colossal spells at the rubble pile. “We don’t want to damage anything that might be buried here.”

Luna had not adapted to the scarcity of magic any better than Celestia, but her sister was much more prone to expending great reserves of her precious magic on frivolities. Celestia could still remember that absurd sculpture Luna had carved into the side of the Canterhorn. Luna had been exhausted for weeks before rebuilding her strength. Celestia suspected that she could wait a thousand years and Luna still would not know how to take proper care of herself.

Celestia gave a grateful smile as she felt Luna’s magic dying down, but then frowned as she heard a grumbled. “Not like we can make everything any more ruined.”

She opened her mouth to retort, but felt her words dying on her lips. In the end she simply whispered right above the edge of hearing. “Just try not to break anything.”

“Can we start our contest yet, sister?”

Celestia glanced to Twilight sitting at the edge of the hill of stone and wood they stood on top of. There was little chance she would participate in their ‘game,’ but Celestia still had to try. “Twilight, would you like to do the honors?”

The silence seemed to stretch out until Celestia heard a pony scream in her ear from behind “GO!”

She turned and huffed at her sister while rubbing her ear, “Twilight was supposed to be the one to say that.”

“We were not aware you wished for this contest to be one of patience.”

Celestia realized her pout was ineffective against her sister who was already buried neck deep in a small hole and watched for only a moment longer as Luna began digging at the ground with her hooves. Celestia shook her head and began to levitate a timber away. With her belly filled, she could afford to use a little bit of magic.

However, even with her hunger sated, the spell was strenuous. Celestia was not sure if she would ever get used to the change. Her horn glowed brighter as it attempted to pull more energy from the dead ether.

Five hours later Celestia let her rump hit the ground in the center of a small clearing she had created. The broken flagstone of the building’s original floor let up a cloud of clinging dust, and Celestia gazed over a mound of junk they had sorted through to where her sister was glaring at her.

“This game of yours is a farce. This is nary a book abound. Naught but broken quills and remnants of sofas. Where are all the books dear sister?”

“I’m sorry Luna, I could have sworn this was where the library had been built.”

Luna’s frown disappeared with her her next words, “No it is my fault dear sister. I ask too much from your memory. After all, they say the mind is the first thing to go.”

“What?” She felt that one vein on her brown twitch.

“Nothing dear sister. Simply for a mare of your age, remembering even the general location is to be commended.”

“Take that back.” Her eyebrow had joined the vein in twitching.

“I meant no disrespect. I understand that when you were young, proper endings to games had not yet been invented. But I mean the utmost respect for my elder.”

“I am not old.” Celestia could feel her face twisting up.

“No, certainly not. Definitely no older than the star you gave birth to.”

“There is nothing wrong with my sun.”

“Nothing wrong if you-”

Luna never got to finish her sentence as a white blur slammed into her.

They rolled around through the dirt each trying to find an opening in the other’s defense. Celestia always won their tussles. That was why she was so surprised to find herself on her back with Luna above, and soft feather tips rubbing against her sides.

She resisted as long as she could. Celestia tried not to squirm.

The dam burst and she broke out laughing.

“I yield, ha,” Celestia was gasping for breath, “ha, please. I yield. No more. You win.”

Luna’s onslaught ceased as the feathers stopped their assault. Celestia used one of her own wings to wipe a tear from her eye and looked up at her younger sister to see Luna starting off at something with a perplexed look.

“No… It seems our young Twilight has won the game.”

Celestia craned her head backwards against the ground. In her vision Twilight towered upside down only a span from where they had come to lay and Celestia rolled until Twilight was right side up. Her former student was sitting upright in the exact same spot she had been since they had arrived at the rubble pile.

However, there was a coverless book at Twilight’s hooves, practically underneath Celestia’s head.

Luna and Celestia untangled themselves as they both stood up to stare at Twilight.

“When did she-”

“We do not know sister.”

“How long ago did she-”

“We do not know sister.”

The exchange was one of numb surprise.

A number of possible scenarios raced through Celestia’s mind. The book could have been knocked there, either in the earlier search or the ensuing tickle fight. The damaged text seemed to be squared up too perfectly with where Twilight was sitting for that to be the answer, however. Luna could have also planted the book, perhaps as a misguided attempt to apologize for her earlier words during lunch. Celestia could think of no evidence to discredit that possibility.

However, there was a third possibility that kept coming back to Celestia.

Celestia swept Twilight up in a massive hug, and tried to ignore how her students head fell limply over her withers.

“You won the game Twilight! You should have told us when you found a book, but you did a very good job. Neither Luna nor myself could find one. I’m very proud of you.”

For the third time that day Celestia wiped a tear from her eye. However, this one was not from sadness or from laughter.

“Please, do not patronize her so.”

Celestia turned her head to look at her sister in bewilderment. “What do you mean?”

“She used to be the greatest mind in Equestria. You’re telling her you’re proud that she found a book?”

“I… I am proud of her.”

“She should be happy with this then? Twilight is this all you want?”

“Yes- no-” Celestia did not know how to respond.

“Either she is a simpleton or she is still our Twilight. You can’t have it both ways Celestia!”

“Twilight is still plenty smart. You heard her theories on Discord earlier. We never even thought of something like that. She’s just… buried… I’m proud she is working her way out.”

Celestia twisted around behind Twilight and used her wings to cover Twilight’s ears. She didn’t know how much made it through to her student, but she didn’t want her to hear the fight she knew was coming.

“Celestia, whenever I treat her like a child you scowl at me. Yet, that is all you do. You feed and clean her. You praise her for the simplest of things-”

“And why shouldn’t I? If an Equestrian Cup flier were to break her wings, you would praise her during her recovery efforts and therapy. Each step and each flap of the wing is an accomplishment. And, eventually, when she is able to compete again, you praise her for that as well.”

“Sister, use your brain for a moment. Think about what pony we are dealing with.”

“Twilight-”

“Exactly!” Luna paused just long enough for Celestia to open her mouth again, “Twilight Sparkle! Maybe you are right that being out here in all of this waste is better for her than being in my castle. Neither of us really know. We aren’t psychologists… Of course if this is even a psychological issue. It could also be neurological, or in all likelihood a magical ailment. We’ll give that you were always better at theory than I, but your talents never leaned towards healing.”

Luna continued her rant, “But the fact is that nopony alive has the knowledge to properly diagnose whatever happened to her, with the possible exception of Twilight herself, and little good that does us. So I have deferred to your judgment. You know her better than I. But… Your treatment of her has been blind.”

“How so?” Celestia could feel her teeth grinding.

“We are talking about the pony that nearly destroyed Ponyville when she thought she was going to be tardy.”

And suddenly Celestia understood what Luna was saying. Her legs felt weak.

“You’re saying-”

“Yes. You need to push her. If she is still our Twilight, then the core of her being is still intact. At heart she is a student, your student. At heart she desires to please. Push her. Give praise where it is due.”

Celestia shook her head. “She’s getting better.”

“She is sitting underneath your wings like a rock.”

“I… I admit that you have a point. A very valid point. Maybe… Maybe I can use her desire to please to drag her out. But… It can’t be that easy, or she would be back with us now. I don’t know what she is struggling with, but I WILL celebrate her victories. And I expect you to celebrate with me. Is that understood.”

For a moment it seemed like Luna was about to say something more, but instead she just reluctantly nodded her head. Celestia let her wings drop from Twilight’s ears.

“Twilight, I am sorry for what you might have heard me say earlier. We did not mean it. We understand that thou has demons to conquer, but we lack the patience of our sister. I did not mean to spoil your victory in our game… Let’s all look at the book you found.”

Celestia shot Luna a grateful smile as they gathered around the tattered book.

“Tis a ledger…”

Celestia hummed to herself as she responded, “so it would seem.”

“It seems this store only did business with quills and sofas.”

“So it would seem. An oddity to be sure. I think Twilight may have once mentioned-” Celestia was cut off as Luna began laughing. Celestia glared at her sister in more curiosity than anything else, “Is everything alright Luna?”

The princess of the night waved a hoof as if to shoo Celestia away as she calmed down. “Tis only the absurdity of this afternoon. We spend hours digging through a worthless pile of rubble looking for a good book to read. In the end it is Twilight who finds our quarry, but it’s just a ledger.”

“Luckily I have some books set aside that we can read tonight. Perhaps we should find some place to settle down. It is nearing time for you to raise the moon.”

Luna nodded her assent and the three of them went to find a nice place to curl up for the night while there was still daylight. The summer was still warm enough that they did not need to worry about catching chill or about lighting a fire for warmth. However, they did need to find a location sheltered from the wind. After all the trees had died and the rain had stopped, much of the countryside had turned to dust, and billowing winds could carry particles at high speed. During the day Celestia kept a magical barrier up, but at night it was easier to drop the spell.

Luna suggested that they return to the bank, but Celestia was not eager to return there. It was such an impersonal building with no soul to it. In the end they had settled on an old cottage. The ceiling had collapsed and the timbers would likely be rotten if everything was not dead. Even the things which normally feasted on ruin had surrendered to the great silence. As it was, the walls seemed sturdy enough to keep out the wind.

Celestia left Twilight inside the cottage with Luna. The furniture had all been ruined when the roof had given way, and it would take some time for her sister to prepare the building for them to spend the night. Celestia ideally hoped that Luna might find something of value as she headed back out the door to make a circle of the cottage.

It was a habit she had picked up during a different era and a different age. It was important to always make a sweep of the perimeter. Over the years the compulsion had faded, but with the solitude it had returned.

Celestia stopped behind the ruined home next to a dry rain barrel. A pony skull sat besides it, bleached white from the sun. Celestia moved her hoof towards it but froze halfway through the motion. Slowly her horn flickered to life as she pulled away a few hooffuls of the the cracked earth. With gentle care she lowered the skull into the hole, and smoothed the dirt over it.

She looked at the barrel and considered breaking off a piece of wood to use as a marker. Then she realized that she would likely never come by here again. There would be no other pony to ever see any cairn or memorial she might leave.

“Sister!” Luna’s head jutting out a broken window, horn ablaze, nearly gave Celestia a fright. “You must finish your dreary patrol and come in here posthaste. There is a small pocket, no more than two span across at most, but still it is certainly there.”

Celestia smiled at her sister and leapt through another window, hoping to give Luna a start. She winced as a shard of glass bit into her side, but was not concerned. It would clot soon enough.

When she looked around the single room cottage, Celestia saw that Luna had shoved all the rubble against the walls. Twilight was still sitting in the center of the room, silent and unmoving. Luna on the other hoof was practically dancing in place in the far corner, flipping her mane from side to side.

After they had found their first pocket of magic Celestia had hoped she had found the key to helping Twilight. They had placed her in the center of it and she had absorbed it like a sponge, but otherwise showed no outward signs of change. It had been like that with all of the small isolated pools of magic that somehow had survived. Eventually she had given up.

Celestia came closer to her sister but did not feel the ether until she was only a hoof length away. It was indeed a small pocket, but not the smallest they had found.

“Sister, you must feel this against your mane. I feel like casting a spell- Oh! In the morning we can use this to seek out the library you seek. There we will find more than enough books for you to read to Twilight.”

Celestia shook her head. “Let’s save it. We don’t know what is happening to the tainted residue in the ley lines, and we might need a reserve someday.”

She hated the disappointed look in her sister’s eyes. “I suppose 'tis for the best. You are, as always, level headed.”

Luna drew just enough magic from the pocket to cast a light spell, holding back the growing darkness, and Celestia pulled the book she had secreted away in the outer pocket of her bag. She had found it several weeks back in a worn saddle bag in the middle of the road. There had been no sign of the former owner, but it was not unusual for the skeletons to have already turned to dust.

She took a moment to sort through her two saddle bags and frowned at the way they were beginning to bulge. She would need to keep an eye out for a larger bag, but even still it was likely time to make her way back to Canterlot. Out of the corner of her eyes she gazed at Twilight’s bare back. She had considered asking if Twilight would mind carrying a bag several times, but whenever she did the words never came.

“I will not reduce my student to a mere beast of burden.” She whispered. Shame suddenly rushed through Celestia. She had thought herself above such ancient racism.

Celestia sat down next to Twilight and paged through the book. Every four or five pages there would be a full page illustration breaking up the large font text. Celestia had not intentionally chosen it because of Twilight’s condition, but she wondered if it would be easier for her student to follow than some of the other students. Ultimately it did not matter. Until she managed to find where the library was buried, her selection was limited.

“Owen was a peculiar creature. He had no tail or hooves, and only two legs. He was so peculiar that he did not…” and Celestia read the story.

Luna had started off sitting on the other side of their little camp site, but as Celestia was turning a page, she realized that her sister had sidled over next to her and was watching over her shoulder. Celestia paused looking over to Luna.

“Come Tia. We are nearing the end.”

Celestia relented to the prodding of her sister’s hoof and continued reading. She felt guilty that Cadence was out there alone somewhere, but was surprisingly content. It would be nice if she could end each night like this.

With the turn of another page, she looked up to see Twilight’s head bobbing as she struggled to stay awake.

“I think we are done for tonight.”

Celestia spread her forehooves forward and after a moment pulled Twilight so that her student’s head was laying across her front legs. Some nights Twilight would take the initiative and lie down by herself. She put away her book and pulled out a brush and began combing it through Twilight’s mane. Celestia hoped that Twilight liked it.

“It’s a shame that her mane had not yet become ethereal. It would make the grooming much easier.”

Celestia simply noded in response as she continued her ministrations and began to hum a lullaby. As she continued working the brush through Twilight’s purple mane, she looked at Luna’s and her own mane with an appraising eye. It was true that there ethereal nature made them easy to keep clean, but they were painful reminders of what had been lost.

Both of their manes hung limp around their necks untouched by the slight breeze cutting in between the barriers of their camp. The astral wind that once carried their manes was long dead. She was not sure if the convenience of staying clean was worth the price of the painful memories.

“You should do voices.” Luna’s whisper took Celestia by surprise and she looked up from Twilight’s mane to see a pout on her sister’s face.

Celestia broke her melody to ask for clarification, “What do you mean.”

“When we were little, you used to read me stories like that. But you would do voices. Do you remember that.”

Celestia resumed her humming.

“You had funny ones, and serious ones. There were scary voices and heroic voices.”

She nodded her head.

“I liked the voices… You should do them.”

“I can do the voices.”

Celestia resisted the urge to squawk when a leg was thrown around her neck for a hug. A moment later she felt a warm body cuddling next to her.

“Twilight will like the voices.”

Celestia continued to brush Twilight’s hair. Without the ability to bathe, keeping Twilight groomed was a challenge. Even in possession of her faculties, her student had been exceptional at getting knots in her mane.

“Goodnight Tia.”

“Goodnight Lulu.”

And then the nightscape was transformed. Luna’s spell vanished and only a dull moonlight lit their “camp.” Celestia considered casting a weak light spell of her own, but once her eyes adjusted to the darkness she would be able to continue working the brush just fine. While she waited she focused on the sounds.

There was the shrill, ever present wind along with the pater of dust sprinkling against their shelter. Twilight’s breathing was a comforting rhythmic sound. Celestia still remembered those panicked minutes when it all began when she had been deprived of that rhythmic sound. Finally there was the sound of Luna already snoring.

Celestia liked to joke that her sister’s special talent in fact had nothing to do with the moon or even dreams, but instead was the ability to sleep through anything short of a dragon’s roar.

“We should go see where Luna found the grass and water tomorrow.”

Celestia looked down in surprise at Twilight trying to determine if she had imagined the words or if her protege had truly spoken. When nothing else was forthcoming she resumed her humming, though no longer with a clear melody.

She sighed. There was a harmony, of sorts, in all the death that surrounded them. The world no longer warred with itself, and as Celestia looked at the two ponies curled against her she felt that there was harmony in their camp. Perhaps, if one day Cadence could be persuaded to return to them, the gaping hole in her heart could begin to heal. Celestia nodded her head in confidence. Cadence would return once Twilight got better.

As she continued to move the brush up and down Twilight’s neck she contemplated the spot where her crown and regalia should have been. She glanced down at her own chest to see it bare. After wearing almost the same thing for thousands of years, she thought she would have missed it more.

Celestia spread her massive wing to shelter the two ponies so very close to her heart and gave a contented sigh. She lowered her head across Twilight’s neck and closed her eyes seeking the embrace of sleep.

However, as her mind began to drift, she continued to picture her crown. As she remembered the day she set aside her regalia, Celestia decided she did not mind no longer being Princess Celestia.

+++

”Fantastic Turnout”, says Princess Twilight Sparkle

Early estimates are showing an eight-seven percent voter participation amongst eligible Equestrian citizens in what will surely go down in history as Equestria’s first open and free election (pictures of happy ponies at the ballot boxes can be found on page 11).

Not all ponies came to vote however. “This is a mistake,” Trotter Heart told reports, “Things are fine the way they are.” It is believed that a significant portion of those who did not vote partook in the protests which continue throughout this evening but remain peaceful.

In a sign of support for the new Democratic system, Princess Luna was the first to cast her ballot. Rumors had been abound that the Princess had opposed the plan in closed door meetings.

Princess Luna along with the other Princesses of Equestria will retain ceremonial roles under the new Democratic system and are expected to take on adversarial positions within the new government. When questioned about what forms these positions will take-

Author's Notes:

We have a Luna chapter coming up next!

Before anyone mentions, I am aware that I am being inconsistent in Luna's speech patterns. That is intentional.

So I remembered I had wanted to post a link to a comic on deviant art that had sort of inspired this story, but have lost the link. It was supposed to be funny (obviously I am going a different direction) with Celestia talking about how Twilight would be with her forever even after Equestria was dead and gone (they were surrounded with tombstones). If anyone has a link to it, I would like to post in in my Author's note to acknowledge where the seed of this story started.

Chapter Three - Dreams

Luna listened very carefully as she maintained her ruse.

Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out.

As the sand continued to patter against the walls around their camp, Celestia continued her tuneless humming. Luna could picture the brush moving rhythmically with each note and wondered if Celestia would ever be interested in combing her own midnight mane like when they had been younger. No longer being composed of real hair, it would be pointless, but Luna suspected it might feel nice again.

Relax your throat. Make sure to snore.

Luna’s ears twitched when she heard somepony say, “We should go see where Luna found the grass and water tomorrow.” The humming stopped.

Luna almost stirred at the words. It had sounded like it had been Twilight, but surely it must have been her sister. Luna felt her leg twitching with anxiety.

The act Luna. Maintain the act. It doesn’t matter who spoke. Focus on snoring. In and out.

A moment later the humming resumed.

How long can it take my blasted sister to comb a mane. I want to go to sleep.

After what seemed like forever, Luna felt her sister shifting and then a warm pressure on her back. Luna nearly giggled as the soft feathers brushed against her coat but managed to restrain herself, instead contenting herself by snuggling closer to her sister. The humming was done with. Celestia was going to sleep. Luna need wait for only a few more minutes until slumbering herself.

She thought of Cadence out on her own and cursed herself for her weakness.

Luna had meant what she had said to her sister, but had simply left out part of her reasoning. Sleeping alone out in the waste it would be a flip of the bit if she was going to sleep before or after everypony else. Without the constraint of clocks or schedules both Celestia and Cadence kept ridiculously erratic hours. Now Luna could ensure that at least two ponies went to bed before her. As long as she did not need to worry about staying near Cadence, there would be at least two guaranteed dreamers every night.

Sleep overcame Luna and she found herself in the same place she did whenever she slept.

It was the place of no dreams.

The void stretched out around her. Once, the void would have been lit by thousands of twinkling lights, but now there were but three pin pricks in the distance. The void and its lights were the original inspiration of her stars. Everypony dreaming, their hopes and fantasies all shining around her was beautiful, and she wanted to share that beauty with others.

Those stars had also been her escape.

Luna had never told her sister, or anypony else for that matter. It was her greatest shame, second only to becoming Nightmare Moon, that even being attuned to the moon and to dreams themselves, she herself did not dream.

If she had one wish it would be, just once, to dream her own dream.

Before the fall her handicap had been an annoyance, but nothing more. However, with only three ponies with dreams that she could visit, she was suffering. When Cadence had blocked her out it had become even worse.

Luna shuddered as she thought of the how bad it had become over the last few months.

In the far distance of the void Luna could make out a star that was not a star. It was the fifth light in the void and one she dare not approach. The light twisted and morphed, pulling in on itself only to reappear elsewhere. Only once during the Great Pandemonium had she made the mistake of looking into Discord’s mind. From what she had seen, it was a wonder that he was even able to put together two sentences.

Back when the stars in the void numbered in the millions she would split her consciousness and experience the dreams of a multitude of ponies. In return for what they gave her, she would sheperd them to a restful slumber and peaceful dreams. Now with so few, she wanted to savor each one as much as possible. Rather than an army of Lunas flying through the void there would be only one.

Luna spread her wings and glided through the dreamless nothingness to a pink star. With centuries of dreams Luna had seen fantasies of all sorts , but found that her niece was still able to make her blush. Despite how isolated and solitary Cadence had become during the day, the younger alicorn’s dreams were still surprisingly healthy with its warm radiance.

The crystal barrier that had been around the star for months was gone. Luna smiled when she saw that Cadence had indeed been telling the truth when she had invited Luna to resume entering her dreams. However, the welcoming absence of the spherical barrier only made the guilt of abandoning her niece all the more acute.

Luna moved her nose near the glowing star and breathed deeply. It did not smell of lust tonight, but had the hint of passion mixed in with expectation and excitement. She moved her eye up to the star and gazed in. There was a pressure as if something was pulling her in and her mane began to flutter towards the star. With a precise flutter of her wings she held herself in place, keeping her eyes locked on the glowing light.

Cadence and Shining Armor were hiding behind a large potted plant watching Celestia and Twilight awkwardly talk in the garden. Shining looked as he did during his younger years without the burdens of age. Twilight was still a unicorn in the dream. Luna shook her head in pity.

The flowers were in full bloom, a mix of white lilies and bunches of lavender. Petals seemed to be raining down from the air, but when Luna looked up she could find no source. She turned back to the ponies in the garden as she realized they were talking.

“Princess Celestia... I had gotten an anonymous letter telling me to come here. It said some pony had something special to share with me.”

“I… My student, I received a similar letter. When I saw you here I…”

Luna licked her lips. The wafts of expectation combined with the fervor of excited apprehension in particular were quite exquisite. This was what she had been missing. Luna breathed in deeply. The dream had the flavor of a memory. She looked at the blush on her sister’s face and wondered how accurate it really was.

The flavor of the dream shifted.

Cadence let out an excited giggle, and Twilight flung herself at Celestia. Moments later the two were on the ground furiously making out.

Luna sighed. This was why she did not like coming to Cadence’s dreams. Ordinarily she would be able to take enjoyment in the flavors of such a dream, but the presence of Celestia gave it a poor taste. Still any nourishment was better than none at all.

I suppose it is more memory merged with fantasy than anything else.

“Sister? Twilight?”

Luna quirked an eyebrow as a dream version of herself entered the garden. With an appraising eye she thought her hips looked much more attractive in the dream than in real life. The dream version of Luna seemed surprised.

“Luna, I-”

“Princess Luna.”

“How coulds’t thou have a make out party and not invite me?”

Yes, definately fantasy.

Luna pulled away from the dream before it could devolve into a steamy pile of alicorn.

As she drifted away from the pink star she scraped her tongue against her teeth trying to get the taste out of her mouth. The pink star seemed to wink at her.

Had she sensed my presence?

Luna shook her head. It had been her imagination, nothing more. She considered forcing the dream into something more palatable, but shook her head. She would let Cadence have her fantasies. Looking between the other two stars and the one so very close by, her face twisted into a frown. She was so hungry, perhaps she would return later. At the very least she should go back to chat with Cadence.

I did leave her all alone…

But first she needed to deal with the rumbling pit at the center of her being. Luna rolled over onto her back and gazed at her other two possibilities. Finally her eyes narrowed in on a purple star that twinkled in the distance.

She floated towards the dreams of her savior, Twilight Sparkle.

Luna approached hesitantly and with great caution. Twilight’s dreams did not have anywhere near the same madness as Discord’s, but since the fall they had been unpredictable.

Once Luna had hoped to find the Twilight that had been lost to them buried within her dreams, but she had little success in getting through to the scholar. There were some nights, particularly more recently, in which they were able to carry on what passed for a conversation but it was always strained.

How much of her is really left?

Luna had resigned herself to the fact that the best she could do was take away Twilight’s nightmares, but even that had been barred to her by Celestia. Her sister was convinced that the nightmares were Twilight’s ways of trying to work through the trauma, and so every night Luna just let Twilight suffer.

Luna wondered if Celestia understood just how bad the nightmares were and resolved to discuss the issue again with her sister.

She took a careful sniff, and moved her muzzle closer: the smell of paper and dust, along with something else most peculiar. Over the years, Luna had come to identify it as the scent of Twilight dreaming of mathamagical equations. Luna frowned when she noticed what was missing, and she breathed in more deeply. There were no emotions. There would be no sustenance in the twinkling star, but Luna owed it to Twilight to look in anyway.

She gave us back everything, and we can do nothing for her.

The sky was blue and endless.

Twilight was falling, but all around her hundreds of thousands of books were falling as well. There was no ground below, only sky and books as far as she could see. As Luna watched she could see many of the books dwarfed Twilight in size and were open, flapping in the wind as if they were great birds. Twilight landed on a book and compressed her legs before springing to another one with a flutter of her wings.

She smiled at the flapping appendages. It had only been two years before the fall when Twilight began to consistently have wings in her dreams.

I’m glad you came to be at peace with your new body.

Luna watched as Twilight leapt from book to book. At each one she would read out a few facts or quotes and then jump to the next. Occasionally she would miss a jump before falling and landing on another book below with a loud thud. Luna winced several times as she watched, but Twilight never seemed to mind. Each time she would just pick herself up again and continue her hunt.

It seemed like Twilight was searching for something, but Luna could not imagine what. She watched for a few moments before deciding to astrally enter the dream. She let herself surcome to the pull on her mane and became part of the dream.

The wind flowed through her feathers, and unlike when she had been peeking into Cadence’s dream she was hit with the fullness of the experiences. It was always better to enter completely. Luna just wished there was some feeling to the dream.

She flew down to the book that Twilight was currently standing on.

“Twilight Sparkle?”

It was a flip of a bit whether she would get a response.

“Lu- Luna?” Twilight looked up in surprise. “What are you doing here? You don’t normally come to the library.”

“How are you doing Twilight.”

“I’m… I was researching something… Something important, but I keep forgetting what it is.” Twilight sat down in crook of the book’s binding.

Luna smiled. If she could get one response out of Twilight, she might be able to get more.

“How are you feeling Twilight?”

“I’m… I think your sister was reading me a story earlier… Where did she go? I think we were having a nice time. Where are you? Are you hiding somewhere?”

Luna smiled. Twilight was remembering things, if only in her dreams. She would need to share this news with her sister. Suddenly Luna remembered all of the things she had said around Twilight that day and her smile disappeared.

“Do you remember anything else from today?”

“I think... “ Twilight turned away from Luna and began to gaze into the distance. “I think there was a game.” Luna’s smile widened only to disappear at the next words. “We were playing… tag? She told me she wanted to talk to me about something.”

Luna’s double hearts froze.

Is it a coincidence, or is her mind really there during the day?

“Twilight, could you describe the story to me at all?”

“It was about the Tower of Babel. Icarus was an earth pony, but wanted to be in the sky with the pegasi. He built his tower too high.”

Luna shook her head. “Twilight, that’s not how either of those stories go.”

“But some ponies stole his plans. They used them to hurt him and all he loved. Why aren’t these books organized. It would make it so easy if they were in their right places. Poor Icarus who lost his wings.”

Twilight hopped to another book and Luna sighed. It was still better than she was during the day and she would remain in the dream for as long as she could.

“Twilight… Tell me, how you would like to live in a castle? I mean, instead of a wasteland.”

“Applejack never liked my castle.”

Luna pursed her lips as she contemplated her next question.

“Tell me Twilight, are you happy?”

“Right now or in the general case?”

“Both or either.”

“Apples cannot be compared to bananas.”

“Um… Are you happy right now?”

“Right now… I want my books to be in order. I need Spike to help me sort my books…. Luna, what happened to Spike?”

Luna felt her answer catch in her throat. Eventually she settled on a quiet, “Spike’s not here right now.”

“I wish Spike was here. He is so good at helping me sort my books… In general, Yes.”

“Yes? Yes what?”

“The general case. I’m happy. She and I get to spend all day together talking about magic and reading books.”

Luna felt her entire body quivering at how coherent the youngest alicorn was, this was the best she been in what seemed like forever.

“Would you like to talk magical theory right now?”

“Viral magic. Self replicating spells.”

Luna looked at Twilight in curiosity. The smaller pony was staring down at the book she stood on. Twilight began to tremble from hooves to tail.

“Twilight what’s wrong?”

“I think I found what I was looking for.”

Luna knew the dream was changing before it happened. It was a scent on the wind, emotion had finally entered the dream.

It was stark terror.

In the distance Luna could see a red glow. Luna stepped in place in indecision. She had avoided Twilight’s nightmares at Celestia’s request, but didn’t want to leave. The emotion was intense, and Luna could imagine what it would taste like if she shaped the dream away from the nightmare it was about to transform into.

Twilight looked up at the red glow and then tried closing the book on herself as if to hide. If not for the tears in Twilight’s eyes, Luna would have found the Twilight sandwich funny, the cover acting as bread. The glow came closer, and Luna could hear the pained howling of ponies.

Luna focused her vision on what was approaching.

A tendril of flame was reaching for one of the books. When it made contact, the text rapidly flared up, and two more tendrils screeched from it to other tomes. The fire moved along, book from book, branching out into a network of flames as it engulfed Twilight’s mind.

Luna hopped into the air, holding herself aloft with her wings and looked down at Twilight still cowering in her book. The fire was coming closer, and Luna thought she could make out the shadows of skulls within the flames. Soon the tendrils would reach Twilight and her makeshift shelter would only ensure her immolation.

Luna could pull Twilight from the book. She could save Twilight from the coming nightmare. She could betray Celestia’s trust again.

Luna shook her head and flung herself out from the dream.

The nightmare stuff still filled her mouth and Luna retched in the void. She swiped her hoof, dissipating what had clung to her back into the ether.

The star still twinkled in front of her, but now it glowed an angry red. As she continued to watch she began to hear the echo of a filly’s screams coming from it. With a powerful beat of her wings she propelled herself, putting as much distance between herself and the nightmare as possible. She watched as her tears crystallized in the void.

Luna was nearly out of hope. There was only one dream left. She didn’t want to spend another night floating in the void alone. The dreamless void was even worse than the moon had ever been.

I’m focused on my own hunger while Twilight is suffering… I am a base cur...

Celestia’s dreams had always been a beacon. The radiant star in the center of Luna’s void, she never had trouble finding the warm yellow glow. Luna floated to it, trying to focus on the light and not on the emptiness around her.

As she approached the star that was a sun, she noticed she could still see Twilight’s star in the corner of her eyes. Curiosity overwhelmed her and she shot upwards away from both of them. Her meal could wait for a little longer.

Luna had never noticed it before, but the twinkling star was orbiting Celestia’s own star. Tendrils of solar prominences seemed to leap towards Twilight’s light, desperately trying and failing to close the distance. No matter how close two ponies might be, in the void the distance was always impassible.

She glided back down towards her sister’s dream. Celestia had nice normal dreams, and even if Luna found a nightmare, Celestia had said nothing about interfering with her own dreams. Luna would make sure her sister would have a peaceful slumber.

As Luna approached, the star pulsed at her in a friendly manner and Luna could not help but smile. Even when things had been at their worst between them, Celestia’s unconscious had always been welcoming. She lifted her hoof and felt the warm glow.

I love you too dearest sister.

Luna felt her mane being pulled towards the surface of the star, but held herself back. She would give Celestia dreams of a happier time, but it always helped to have some foreknowledge of what she was going into.

Luna looked into the dream.

+++

Glowing Radiance Sweeps Election

The results are in and Cloudsdale pegasi Glowing Radiance has won with an amazing seventy eight percent of the vote.

“I think the results show a great unity of vision for the future of Equestria.”

Glowing Radiance will be sworn in next month as the first Prime Minister of Equestria. As leader of the Traditionalist party, Radiance will have her work cut out for her as she works with the head of the opposition party, Ponies of Equestria for Technomagical Advancement.

The division between these two parties is well known, and all await to see how they cooperate in the future (for an editorial, see pg 23).

Some apprehension has continued to be expressed regarding in the Crystal Empire's decision not to participate in what will likely forever be known as “Sparkle’s Great Experiment.”

In a press conference, Princess Cadence had this to say...

Author's Notes:

A Luna chapter!

I plan to have chapters from each of our princess's perspectives, though Celestia will probably remain our primary perspective character.

Special thanks to The Book for identifying the comic that had inspired this story.

Basically I read it, got a smile, and asked myself, "what would it be like if Equestria was gone and it was just Twilight and Celestia?" Eventually that thought turned into this.

Chapter Four - The Night

Celestia knew that she was naturally white, but she felt pale. Everything had gone horribly wrong.

There had been plans. Canterlot had just instituted weekly emergency drills. The shelters were supposed to keep ponies safe.

“How did this happen?”

At least the screaming had stopped echoing through the vaults, but perhaps it would have been better than the damned silence. She continued pacing back and forth, until her head darted up as the great steel doors slid open and Luna entered. She had known her sister had survived, but did not know in what state.

“Oh Luna!”

Celestia’s composure finally broke and she flung herself at her younger sister.

“Sister! What happened. I was in flight to the peace talks when everything… Everything lurched. When I regained my faculties I found myself on the ground in the middle of a wasteland. I found my guards lying dead around me. When I arrived… I didn’t know if I would find anypony. The surface is an inferno.”

“They set it off. Some type of weapon.”

“Who did?”

Celestia collapsed away from Luna in a heap, “I don’t know who started it or whoes weapon it was. Whoever fired the first shot, the other side retaliated. I don’t know if I want to know. If it was our ponies, I will hate myself because I will never be able to forgive them. If it was the others… I will hate myself for hating them.”

“Where is everypony else? Surely there was time to get others into the vaults.”

Celestia wanted to bawl at the question.

“We had time to get several thousand ponies down here before the full force of the weapon hit.”

“Then where-”

“These vaults were made to keep out many things, but death itself was not one of them.”

“What do you mean?”

“We were all huddled safely behind the great doors. Twilight and myself were helping the other magi with protective spells while Cadence worked to keep everypony calm… Then they all just... died.”

“How is that even possible?”

“Damn it Luna, I don’t know.”

There was silence before Luna broached the question Celestia knew was coming, “Are Twilight and Cadence…”

“Follow me.” Celestia fought to stay off autopilot. She needed to be able to think.

They walked through the halls of the vaults. Celestia did her best to stare straight down the hall and not glance to the side. She had moved the bodies into the branching chambers. The main hall was clean and sterile. The others held only death.

“They’re in here.”

They entered through one of the doors. Twilight’s limp body lay on a cot surrounded by blood while Cadence stood over here wiping the youngest alicorn’ brow with a cloth. Cadence’s normally shining eyes were dull.

“What happened?”

“As soon as it started, I could tell something was wrong with Twilight. I think… I think she was in pain, but I can’t be sure. She has always been better than she realizes at hiding things like that from me.”

Cadence looked up with dead eyes and added, “Then it hit full force. Twilight’s barrier broke and she just started screaming. She was screaming for hours…”

“Where did all the blood come from?”

“If you scream enough you can tear up the tissue in your throat. Eventually Twilght’s screams transformed into silent coughs of blood. But you could tell she was still screaming…”

Celestia shuddered at the lack of emotion in Cadence’s voice.

“But now?”

“A few hours ago she just went catatonic. She’s been like this since. Not moving, not saying a word. We can’t even get reflexive responses. For a little while I think she forgot to breathe, or that’s what it seemed like. Aunt Celestia managed to get her breathing again though.”

Celestia watched as Luna tried to levitate the washcloth and growled when her telekinesis failed.

“My accursed magic hasn’t been working properly since I woke up in that wasteland.”

“That does not come as a surprise to me. I would suspect it won’t be working right for awhile.”

“Explain again?”

“It’s not important right now.”

Celestia watched as Luna tried to elicit a response from Twilight for hours, and felt an overwhelming sense of dread as her sister turned towards her.

“Sister, is there anything left of Twilight in this shell?”

Celestia’s composure finally well and truly shattered. She collapsed into Luna and began sobbing into her sisters mane. “I don’t know… I don’t know.”

Celestia needed to be strong. If not for Twilight, for Cadence. She could not imagine what it was like for her niece to be watching such a display of weakness, but for once she did not care.

“Sister, we should leave these vaults. Mayhaps some ponies survived, but we will not find them in here.”

“But…”

“Aunt Celestia, I think Aunt Luna is right. We can break off the handles from some halberds and turn Twilight’s cot into a stretcher easily enough.

Celestia nodded her head. They were right. At the very least things could not be much worse outside.

“Very well…”

As they were preparing to leave and gathering supplies, Celestia heard Cadence begin to scream some garbled words. She bolted down the halls smashing through the doors to where Cadence was preparing Twilight for their journey.

Her niece was leaning over her student’s body, yelling something and gesturing Luna and herself over. ”She said something!”

Celestia leaned over her students muzzle, and ignored the tickle of breath against her ear. Twilight was indeed whispering something.

True to Luna’s earlier words, Celestia’s own magic had hardly been working. However, she forced all of her will and power into a simple spell, a noise amplification spell. “Twilight, please try to say that again.”

From Twilight's ruined throat, they all heard her words, “We should leave our regalia here in the vaults. We aren’t princesses anymore… We’re just ponies now.”

Celestia looked up as another pony walked through the door. She blinked twice and then looked at her sister. The new arrival was another Luna. Her sister bristled at the second Luna and began to yell.

“Avast vagrant! What manner of treachery is this that you dare impersonate a Princess of Equestria?”

Celestia shook her head. Something seemed off.

The new Luna walked up to her sister and with a hoof shooed her away. Her sister hopped away with an indignant squawk and then suddenly disappeared into a poof of vapor. Celestia’s eyes widened at the sight and she looked to the newer Luna, the remaining Luna, as she began to speak.

“Really, sister? Is that how I still sound like in your mind? My speech is not that bad. I think I have adapted to the modern vernacular quite well… Most of the time at least.”

“I’m dreaming aren’t I?” Celestia waited until Luna nodded her head. “I thought everything seemed a bit… off.”

“Why are you dreaming about such dreary things sister?”

“We can’t all have your gift of being the master of our dreams Lulu.”

“Yes… We’ll perhaps we can talk somewhere more pleasant? I can take you to a nicer dream.”

Luna offered her hoof to Celestia, and Celestia accepted the hoof in her own.

“I think…” Celestia paused while thinking “I would like to go to Rainbow Falls, before it was a hub.”

“You know it works better if you do it. The dream will be richer and fuller.”

Celestia blinked. Had Luna just licked her lips?

There! She just did it again.

Luna’s tongue darted out and in as if in anticipation. Celestia shook her head. Her sister could be very strange at times.

“Maybe, but you can transition the dreams so much more easily than I can.”

“Tia, trust me. It is better that way.”

“I don’t know if I have ever really noticed a difference, but I suppose I can do it.”

Celestia closed her eyes and began to picture the Rainbow Falls in her mind. The trick to controlling one’s dreams was to convince oneself of a new truth. Celestia had to believe she was in Rainbow Falls. Suddenly she felt a heavy kick.

“Oww! Very funny Luna.” She kept her eyes closed and tried to suppress her feelings of inferiority. She knew that Luna had mastery of her own dreams, but that did not mean that her sister had to rub it her face.

“What’s wrong Tia?”

“You kicked me in the flank. That’s what’s wrong.”

“I assure you I did no such-”

“Ow! Something just bopped me in the nose.” Celestia opened her eyes and saw that her sister was still standing next to her.

“Sister are you alright?”

“It’s just… Do you hear-”

+++

Celestia was torn from her dream by the feeling of Twilight thrashing. In her sleep Celestia had curled around her former student serving as blanket and pillow all in one. Now she was aware that Twilight was screaming.

Shifting herself onto her rump, she pulled Twilight into what she hoped was a comforting embrace and began to coo sweet nothings into her pupils ear while running her hoof through Twilight’s mane.

As Celestia tried to soothe her student she thought she heard a whimper coming from Luna. When she looked for her sister she could see Luna’s face drooping and her eyes were wide puppy-dog eyes. Luna looked like she had just been kicked to the ground or sent to bed without dinner. Celestia decided to ignore her sister’s oddities and focused on Twilight.

Gradually the screaming died down to whimpered crying, and Celestia began to make out words. Celestia bit her lip in an attempt to feel some pain. She hated that these were the moments when Twilight seemed most lucid, but she forced herself to embrace them. They could very well be the key to fixing Twilight.

“Light it hurt. It hurt so much. It was just a tingle at first, but then it began to itch, and then it began to burn. I felt my blood boiling. They hurt me! They hurt me so much. Please make it stop. Light, make it stop.”

Celestia could do nothing for her student but simply continued to stroke her hair. “I’m here for you Twilight.”

“They hurt me. They hurt me…”

They had set fire to the magical ley lines running throughout the planet. They had killed magic.

But friendship was magic, so they had killed friendship.
But life was magic, so they had killed all life.
But Twilight Sparkle was magic, so they had…

“How long has it been?”

“Too long my student.”

“I… they are all falling through my hooves. All unsorted.”

Celestia shook her head. She had hoped for more tonight. They had been doing so well. Eventually Twilight’s breathing returned to a rhythmic pace that told Celestia that Twilight had returned to the sweet embrace of sleep.

Celestia became aware of a pair of eyes watching her from the darkness.

“It’s my fault Luna. She wanted to know her role in things and settled on friendship. She was happy with that. Was that really so bad? I mean, Cadence is attuned to love. I just thought…”

“That she had a more complicated and nuanced destiny. Just as I am attuned to dreams and the moon, and you are attuned to sun and order, you felt that Twilight had a cosmic purpose she still was yet to discover.”

Celestia numbly nodded her head. “I convinced her to start studying ley lines. I helped her with her research on attunement.”

“You were right. She took to it so easily, she was meant for it.”

“I was just afraid of losing her. I was worried friendship wouldn’t be enough. I was greedy and wanted to make sure she would be by my side forever.”

“You followed your heart sister. Nopony can fault you for that.”

“Do you want to know?”

“Know what?”

“You know what I’m talking about. You’re an incorrigible snoop.”

“If you would like to share with me.”

“I never actually told Twilight… About how I feel, I mean. We were growing closer, working together as equals. Twilight was maturing as a pony and a princess. I was… I was afraid of ruining that. Cadence’s meddling was something I could live with for a few centuries. Besides, I figured we had all the time in the world.. But then the world ended.”

“You can still tell her.”

“I… I want her to be able to understand.”

“Do not let my words from earlier make you second guess yourself. She might be understanding more than I had assumed. When I saw her dreams tonight she mentioned us all playing a game and you reading a story. The details were wrong, but…”

Celestia licked her lips. Her throat was dry. “Was that… before the nightmare?”

“Yes.” Luna nodded her head solemnly. “It was. She also told me, before I left to go to your dream that she was happy. That she was happy to be able to spend her days with you.”

Celestia looked down at her student in thought. “Just how bad are they? Her nightmares I mean.”

“Honestly sister?” Celestia nodded her head and Luna continued, “They are some of the worse I have ever seen. The terror and pain were almost overwhelming.”

“She was… She was lucid when she woke up wasn’t she?”

“It seemed like she might have been. Between the pain that is. I can take away her dreams and the memory of that pain.”

“If you do that, I risk losing what might be my only ability to bring her back. I miss her so much. Talking with her and listening to her think.”

“Celestia.. She is still alive. As long as we have that we have hope.”

“Sometimes… Sometimes I wonder if it would be better if she wasn’t. Would it have been better if I hadn’t started her breathing again? What kind of life is this? It’s so hard always taking care of her. When I have to feed her… It reminds me of when she was a filly, except it’s all so wrong. I always thought love was supposed to… make our burdens light? It’s just….”

Celestia slowly became aware of another pair of eyes looking at up her from between her hooves. Celestia clenched her legs together in a panicked hug.

“I’m sorry Twilight. I didn’t…. It’s just sometimes… Please Twilight you have to understand that I would do anything for you. I didn’t mean...”

“Celestia, you’re hurting her.”

Celestia looked at the pony she was crushing in her grip. Perhaps the blank look on her student's face was just one of discomfort, but the way in which Twilight was turning even more purple than normal could not be good.

“Twilight, I’m sorry.”

Celestia released her grip and could see dark bruising where her legs had been clutching the younger alicorn. Twilight simply stared up at her with big empty eyes. Celestia slid her student out from between her hooves and stood up backing away.

“I’m sorry.” She knew there was more than a hint of pleading in her voice.

Twilight just continued to stare. Celestia shook her head hoping that her student would look away, but still the eyes continued to watch her. Celestia could imagine them saying everything with their silence.

Celestia flung herself away from Twilight and through the door of the cottage. She ran into the darkness, her tears trailing behind her. Outside of the protection of their shelter sand began to pelt her body. The rough grit scratching her hide did little to distract her from her thoughts.

Celestia leaned against the remnants of a stone pillar across the street from the cottage. She could not go too far. She just could not stand having them watch her cry. As her heavy breathing began to calm down she heard hooves clopping on the pavement behind her.

“Sister, is everything allright?”

“No Luna, I... “ Celestia sighed and turned to face her sister. “I need to return to Canterlot.”

“Canterlot? I thought we had salvaged all that we might. Most of the city had been scorched off of the mountain. Is there something you need from the vaults?”

“My saddlebags are full. I need to go empty them.”

“Ah… The three of us can leave in the morning.”

Celestia’s eyes widened, “Did you leave Twilight alone by herself.”

“She will be fine sister. She sits in our shelter still.”

Celestia nodded her head. “I’m going alone. I can get there and back faster that way.”

“Alone? But sister-”

“I want you to take Twilight to your castle.”

“Tia… you know she will not have nightmares or even normal dreams there...”

“I’ve… I’ve been selfish. I felt so powerless to do anything. For thousands of years I ruled undisputed, unrivaled. Now I can’t even help the pony that I…” Celestia resisted the urge to cry again. “I was wrong Lulu. You were right. I thought… I thought that Twilight’s dreams could be the key to her recovery, that we needed to let them evolve naturally. I just needed so badly to be able to do something to help her. I’ve just been hurting her. Just like I hurt her tonight.”

“I… Are you sure about this? I never meant to push you into something you did not want.”

“It’s not about what I want. It’s about what is best for Twilight. Maybe, maybe she will never get better, but at least she might be happy.” Celestia wiped the tears from her eyes.

“I told you she is already happy.”

“I… I know, it’s just hard to believe that. At the very least your castle can’t hurt. We can give it some time and see what happens.”

“How long do you think you will be gone?”

“If I leave now maybe only a day, two at most.”

Luna came over and hugged her.

“I wish you the best of speed then.”

“I just want to say goodbye to Twilight before I go. I haven’t been away from her since…”

“I will take good care of her Tia. I swear it.”

“Thank you.” Celestia tightened the hug before pulling away.

Together the two of them approached the cottage as Celestia contemplated what she would say. When she passed through the door however, all her words were forgotten. Instead she could only think of one thing as a dull panic began to well up inside of her.

“Where’s Twilight?”

+++

Crystal Prices Skyrocket

Nearly five years ago the Royal Academy of Magic shocked the world with their discovery of electro-maginetic properties of crystals. Throughout history, the creation of magical artifacts has been grueling expensive work. The current revolution in both science and magic has stemmed from the ability to create magical resonances in crystals, powered by electrical currents. What some ponies have taken to calling magitech has swept the world transforming how ponies lead their lives.

Unfortunately the demand has been far outstripping supply. For the last six months the Crystal Empire has failed to meet production demands and Equestria has begun looking further abroad for a source of imports, recent reports have indicated that the situation is not likely to resolve soon.

The Ponies of Equestria for Technomagical Advancement Party has proposed expanding into the neighboring Budenny Expanse which geological surveys indicate may contain vast crystal deposits. International treaties regarding the expanse...

Author's Notes:

I like the word elector-maginetic. I'm not sure if I have seen it before.

I had been writing this off of a draft I had on hand (as some of you already know if you had seen the link to the draft on my blog). However, this marks the point where I've consumed the draft and now it is no more. All future chapters will be completely fresh (and as such will take longer to write).

I plan on getting another three chapters of Equestria's Twilight out (The next one is done, I just have someone looking over it) before next Monday and then bounce back to this.

Next chapter is a Twilight chapter! It's gonna work a bit differently than the others. (There is a chance I might do a Cadence chapter first instead).

Chapter Five - The Waste

Cadance fell to her knees before struggling back up to her hooves. She was making her way along the edge of a long canyon that she did not remember existing before. She did not know if the planet had changed since she had left the others or if she was simply lost. Looking both ways, the gouge in the earth stretched in each direction as far as she could see through the great walls of dust.

If she kept walking along it, she could at least keep her bearings.

It was important that she kept going away. Simply living in the wasteland by herself was no longer enough.

She did not need food or water, and she did not think her body really needed sleep. Instead she was filled with a gnawing hunger for something else. She needed to feel love. To love, or be loved, it did not matter. The mutual love between two ponies would be even better.

Her head turned around as if drawn by a beacon. It was like a great light shone through the dust. Aunt Celestia loved Twilight so very much. Cadance licked her lips. Just being near the two of them could sate her.

But then she would be near Twilight.

Cadance wiped away the tear that began to run down her cheek, but only dust was on her face.

If she spent even another hour around the pony who was more of a sister than anything else, she was not sure what she would do. Aunt Celestia loved Twilight, and Cadance could sense that, despite everything that happened, Twilight was still able to love the eldest alicorn back. It would be a feast of emotion, if not for the subtle poison tainting it all.

At first Cadance had thought Twilight was empty. On the surface the former unicorn seemed like nothing more than a shell. For months Cadance sensed only stillness from Twilight, but eventually when she pushed deeper, she was repulsed by what she had found.

Cadance could not understand how one pony could hurt so much.

She thought she would kill Twilight if she ever saw her again. It was the only merciful thing to do. Twilight’s suffering was too great to do anything else.

There were certain things that could destroy even an immortal body.

If she returned to Celestia and Twilight they could be one big family again, much like they had been in those first few months. There would be sisterly love between Aunt Celestia and Luna, and the love Aunt Celestia had for Twilight. Cadance just did not think it would be enough, not with all of Twilight’s pain.

She had always loved to see ponies in love. Spreading love and basking in love had brought her a great warmth even as a filly. It was only after everypony else was gone that she realized that she needed love. With nopony around sharing their hearts, it was like there was a great emptiness inside that she could not fill.

The world used to be filled with so much love.

The chasm spread deep into her soul and grew wider with each passing day. Cadance was not certain if it had a bottom anymore. She did not think she would ever be able to fill it, and would be surprised if it did not run all the way through her. Any warmth that she absorbed would simply fall out on the other side.

The love from the others would simply dull the ache while making her all the more aware of the gaping hole in her being.

That was no way to live her life. It was no way for Twilight to live hers.

There was a simple solution. Cadance kept coming back to it, time and time again. The plan was elegant in its simplicity, and everypony would get what they wanted. Everypony would be happy, and everypony would be loved.

That was all that she wanted.

Cadance would disappear into the waste, never to be heard from again. She had just enough magic left to alter her coat and mane, and reshape her voice. The cutie mark would be the hardest part. She would probably need a mirror to make sure she got all of the details right. Luckily her body shape would not need to be altered too much, and lavender was not that far from pink.

Cadance had just enough magic for one fantastic gift. Twilight would make a miraculous recovery, and Twilight’s trauma would explain any inconsistencies in her memory or behavior. Cadance knew enough about the youngest alicorn’s life to pull it off.

Aunt Celestia would love her the way she needed to be loved, and she could learn to love her back. Without Twilight’s pain, the last of the barriers between Aunt Celestia and Luna would crumble.

Everypony would be happy. There would be nopony in pain. She would be able to fill the hole.

Cadance just did not know where she would hide Twilight’s body when she replaced her.

She shook her head, wishing that she had the moisture left in her body to shed tears. Twilight was like a sister to her. It did not matter if everpony would be better off, she could not let herself give into the temptation. She had to stay away from the others.

Cadance had blocked Aunt Luna out of her dreams when she had first gone into the waste. She was not a skilled lucid dreamer and was not confident that she would be able to keep her secrets. It was not a great loss, as she did not think Aunt Luna had ever been particularly fond of her. She had always just been “that other alicorn.”

It was a necessity. She could not let the others know what she had been dreaming, but Aunt Celestia’s love shone so brightly. Whenever she had looked towards the Canterhorn mountain or the valley below it, she would remember the little filly she had left behind.

Cadance could not stop dreaming about the only thing she could do for Twilight.

The last few nights had been particularly tough. A few times she had found herself wandering towards where she knew she would find the others without even thinking.

She would kill Twilight if she saw her again.

So instead she had lied to Aunt Luna.

She did not want Luna to know know why she was leaving. Her aunt would likely have tried to stop her. Luna and Celestia would try to come up with a way to help her.

Cadance shook her head. There was nothing anypony could do for her. Even if Luna tried acting out Cadance's fantasies it would not be real.

The meeting with Aunt Luna was hard. She knew Luna was always only a few miles away, keeping an eye on little Cadance. However, at that distance she did not need to worry about the older alicorn seeing or hearing anything. Talking to her in pony however, had been different.

It had taken too much magic to weave the illusion to hide how bad she was. Even worse, pretending to still be normal had drained her. When Luna had mentioned Twilight, it had taken everything Cadance had to conceal how much she hated that pony.

She pressed a hoof against her face and pushed against her eye until it hurt. She loved Twilight. It was the pain that she hated. It was what Twilight made her think of doing that she hated.

She loved Twilight.

Cadance needed to get away. It did not matter where.

Dropping her dream barrier was a concession that she had been forced to make. Cadance was confident that, despite everything, Aunt Luna would have insisted on coming with had she not agreed to that demand.

Even though she risked spilling her secrets in her dreams, Cadance was confident, that if Luna had come with, that she would not have been able to maintain the charade of normality. This way, at least, she had a chance.

Cadance squinted at the distance.

The story she had told Aunt Luna had been a lie. There was no possibility of other ponies having survived. Yet, now she felt something.

Cadance had decided that her fate would be to waste away in the waste when she had finally sensed it. Just beyond the horizon were ponies that loved one another. There were happy ponies out there. She was not sure how long she had been walking, but they always seemed just outside of her reach.

If she could find the elusive ponies, her problems would disappear. There was love in the distance that could fill the hole. They would be strangers that she would not need to worry about hurting. If only they were not so far away.

Cadance looked down at her cracked and bleeding hooves. Perhaps she would find a rock and lie down behind it. She did not need sleep, but a nap would be nice. In a few days she would be far enough away that she could probably put the dream barrier back up without having to risk Luna hunting her down.

Only, she was not sure if she wanted to completely cut herself off. The isolation was already bad enough. Emotions did not carry well across dreams, but when Luna visited she could feel something at least. There was hope there in her dreams. All Cadance had to do was craft the right dreamscape to provoke Luna. Certainly her aunt was not as icy as she seemed.

Cadance stumbled again and did not get up. Instead she reached forward and grabbed two small stones with her hooves. Slowly she began pushing them across the ground towards one another. She wiggled the smaller of the two stones.

“Oh, Princess Celestia.” Her voice cracked as tried to adjust to talking again. “Somehow I’ve always known how you’ve felt.”

She tried to lick her cracked lips, and for a moment thought she tasted a hint of copper.

“My most faithful student.” Cadance moved the larger rock. “Of course I have always loved you.”

There was a third rock off to the side. She flicked it away with her magic. She would need to hide the body.

Slowly Cadance started tapping the stones against one another, and then shifted to smashing the two stones together until they ground themselves to dust. She was forced to close her eyes as the wind shifted and bits of stone began pelting her face. She had to keep moving. Cadance had to stay away from the others, and she needed to find the love that she felt.

With great force of will she pushed herself up to her hooves and stepped forward again. Half blind, she carefully felt out each step, using the warm sensation over the horizon to guide her.

Rocks clattered over the edge of the cliff and down into the canyon as she stumbled again. She did not hear them hit the bottom. Something was wrong with her hoof. Cadance held it up before her face trying to inspect it through the maelstrom of dirt whirling around her. It looked like she might have frostbite. The limb was beginning to turn black at the extremities, and it even looked like part of the flesh had decayed. If she squinted her eyes it almost looked like a hole had formed in her leg.

She was so hungry.

Cadance just wanted to be loved.

+++

Economic Downturn Worsens

After negotiations to secure mineral rights in the Budenny Expanse fell apart six months ago, the nation has a sharp rise in unemployment.

Many new industries relying on cheap access to high grade crystals have been forced to close their doors. With each business that has gone under, more ponies find themselves on the streets. Investor confidence is reported to be at an all time low.

The situation has been exacerbated by the recent news from the Crystal Empire. An in depth magical survey on, as of yet, untapped crystal fields has shown them to be unsuitable for harvesting. What is being dubbed the “Shadow Report,” indicates that a large number of the crystals in the Empire’s northernmost regions have been tainted by residual dark magic and could not be made suitable for use without great expense.

Ponies were stunned Wednesday when Crystal Consolidated announced that it was declaring bankruptcy. As one of the largest-

Author's Notes:

So how about that Cadance, huh?

How about that Cadance, huh?

So I decided that to put this before the Twilight chapter mainly because I was having trouble fitting it in later for pacing purposes. Twilight's chapter might be posted as soon as Monday.

It ended up being a bit shorter, but I really don't think I could have added a whole lot to it without detracting from it. I probably should have spent some more time describing the waste, but I will leave that to your imagination.

Chapter Six - Broken

I think I am broken.

I hear words, but they are just sounds devoid of meaning. Sometimes I try to figure out what they’re supposed to be telling me, but it is a struggle. I remember that series of words were messages, a way to communicate. I still remember that much, even if everything else is gone.

I think I used to like puzzles.

This is sort of like a puzzle.

The problem is it takes me so long to figure them out. I used to be able to solve problems faster, but everything is a jumble now. Nothing is sorted and deciphering one word brings with it a wave of unconnected memories and meanings.

It is like a library with all the books mixed up.

What’s a library? Do you know? I can’t remember. It is another one of those words that I like though. It makes me feel warm and safe, and I find myself just wanting to say it. But the sounds get mixed up on the way to my tongue and nothing comes out.

Still it is better than when the words come out as the wrong sounds. Sometimes I don’t realize that it is me talking and I think they are another riddle. Then I realize I am talking to myself.

I still like these puzzles even if they are frustrating. The best ones are the ones about magic. I think she knows that I like them, because she seems to give them to me a lot. This particular puzzle is hard, and I don't think it is about magic.

That's OK though. I'll keep working on it until I have it.

The key is not to forget the puzzle. The sounds don't linger in the air once I hear them and I need to make sure I remember the taste of the words. I can't write it down, not anymore. Even if I could, I would just misplace my notes.

I’ve figured one out. I’ve figured out one one of the puzzles. Not only that, but I’ve figured out the response as well. Two puzzles at once. I want to clap my hooves together, but it takes all my concentration to hold onto the response. Carefully I move my lips. The sound needs to move from my brain to my tongue, and I can feel the taste leaping out of my mouth. That last part is tricky.

“It’s the sun.”

I’m proud that I solved the puzzle, but I see a pony frowning at me. She doesn’t seem to understand my answer, and suddenly I am filled with great shame. I’m not sure who that pony is, but I don’t want to disappoint her.

I know that she is important.

OK, think. What was the riddle? What had she said?

“Why is it so hot?”

That was it, wasn’t it?

And it is hot because of the sun, right?

That is what the sun does. It makes things hot. Hot means sun. Sun equals hot. Hot plus Hot equals sun.

She asked her riddle and I answered.

Suddenly, it hits me why the pony frowned. I was late. I hate being tardy, but it happens so much lately. She had asked her question two days ago, and I just now figured it out.

I want to hit my head against a stone, but nothing happens. The pain is there again. Trying to solve the puzzles always hurts. There is a terrible pressure inside my skull. I want to break it open and let whatever is trying to escape fly away. My scalp begins to tingle. Trying to remember always burns.

I wonder if it will ever make its way out?

Most of the time I just try to hide from the fire.

It always finds me. They always find me.

Why do they want to hurt me so much?

The nice pony is walking away from me again. I wish I knew what she was doing. Not even so that I could help her; I think that is beyond me. I just want to understand.

I wish I could make her happy.

“Oh! A chess set.”

Words! Are they mine? Did I say them? No, they belong to the nice pony. It means I have another assignment. I need to try harder to solve this one in time.

I can feel the flames licking at my mind as they burn away the answers.

No! She is saying something else. I haven’t figured out the first thing said yet. I don’t want to be tardy again. I want to cry, but I cannot remember how to make tears.

A word pierces the smoke. “Fungus.” I know that word. The answer is here somewhere.

I scramble around looking for the right book. I know, I know, I probably look ridiculous, but what else am I supposed to do.

I smile or at least I think I do. The two do not always mean the same thing, but I do what I can to express my joy. I found the answer.

“Cryptococcus neoformans. It was a radiological fungus much like the ones found in the Gallobyl disaster site when ponies finally felt it safe enough to investigate. It’s managed to live by feeding off the radiation that killed everything else.”

The words tumble out of my mouth.

They burn on my tongue and rattle around my skull. The noise grows louder and louder as it echos between my ears. Each word has a torrent of meaning and connections.

Gallobyl: A sight of a historic battle in the twenty year war. The home of the writer Neighkolay Trostloy. Location of a terrible accident.

Feed: Noun. Food for grazing animals. Verb. To Feed, to eat. To consume.

Live: Verb. Related to Life. Life, Noun. Something I’ve destroyed. Genocide. Noun. The deliberate killing of a large group of ponies. Killing a large group of ponies. Twilight Sparkle. Noun. Failure. Failure. Noun. To disappoint Her. Her, noun. The one pony you want to make happy.

The words keep echoing, word after word. All the meanings I’ve been searching for all at once come crashing down on me. I want to hide again, but I don’t. I answered her question right. I answered it on time. That gives me strength. The cacophony recedes.

I look up for my reward. I look up to see her give me a smile.

Only I find the opposite.

She had been smiling, but my answer made her frown. What was wrong with it this time? It was perfect. Succinct and to the point. Timely and topical.

Am I just stupid? Do I think I’m saying the right things only for my answers to be completely wrong?

Why do I always get it wrong?

Why was she smiling?

I try to remember when she had started. It wasn’t my earlier answer, and it wasn’t answering her most recent riddle.

She had been staring at me. Why had she been staring at me?

I manage to wrestle control of my eyes just long enough to give myself a once over.

I’m holding a doll.

Does the nice mare like dolls?

I want to give it to her, but I can’t force my hoof to cooperate. I don’t want to give up the doll.

When did I find a doll?

The answer is in here somewhere, in one of these books, or in one of the screams.

But that isn’t really the riddle now is it?

We are not outside anymore. She is smiling again. She smiles when the other mare is around. I wish I could make her smile like that. The other mare makes her happy, but I only seem to be able to make her sad.

What could I do?

I gasp for breath as I try to keep my head above the paper line. I’m caught in a turbulent tumbling stream of memories. The flow of books is carrying me with it, and I struggle to keep my head above the books. My hooves flail wildly, but still I manage to catch a glimpse of what is inside.

She used to smile when I wrote her letters. I wish I could remember how to write.

I wish I could cry.

I pull myself out of the stream. The other mare is sitting there talking with her at the shore. She makes it look so easy. The dark pony must be a smart mare to answer her riddles so easily.

My ears twitch. I heard something. It’s floating down the stream, and I stick my hoof in to grab it.

“There is a natural spring, and somehow the rock is filtering the water.”

I can answer this one. I look at the sheet of paper I pulled from the river.

“A combination of small rocks, gravel, and sand can create a natural filtration system. Especially if charcoal from charred and dead plant life is mixed in.”

I’m so happy.

OW!

Something slams into me.

It’s an important word. She said it. I know she says it a lot. There is always so much emotion when she says it. She is always looking at me when she says it. It is the same word every time.

It echoes in my head, each time cracking my skull and sending fire down my spine.

What does that word mean? Why is it important?

I try to cling onto the word for later. I know I won’t solve the riddle in time to avoid being tardy, but I still need to solve it.

I leap up into the air and snatch a fluttering sheet of parchment. I look at the words on the piece of paper..

“Come on Twilight. Try some of this grass that Luna brought us. It’s really lovely.”

All but one of the words fade. It isn’t a solution, but it is progress.

Twilight.

That’s the important word.

I file the paper away in the river for later and it flows away from me in a current of non-thought. Already it is lost to me. I wish I knew where that river went. Maybe there is an ocean of books at the end. One thought occurs to me. Noun, failure.

I smell something. There is something in front of me.

Feed: Noun. Food for grazing animals.

I take a bite. I’m not sure what it tastes like. I don’t know where the reference book for taste is. Still, what I did feels right. My mouth is moving in chewing motions. A lot of time my body knows what to do even when I don’t. I trust it most of the time. It keeps me near the pretty mare even when my hooves won’t listen to me.

I think it must like her too.

Something starts tingling and my entire skull is on fire. I know what this is. It’s the one thing I can’t forget.

I’m using magic.

I’m levitating the fork.

Light, it hurts.

I focus myself on the fork. I need to if I want to fight through the pain. My body is telling me that this fork I am eating is good. I know it means I will miss some of the riddles, but I need to trust my body. I concentrate on the fork. My body seems to like it. Maybe forks are delicious? I keep chewing.

I’m not sure how much time passes as I eat my fork, but a message blows in on the wind.

“She is convinced that there are survivors.”

Survivors. I know this one. I’ve thought about it before, but I don’t know why. I already have the answer prepared here somewhere.

There it is. It’s just lying there.

“The magical ley lines covered the globe. Including tributaries and flow bleed they possessed a ninety nine point eight percent planetary coverage. The odds of a living pony surviving the Line Burn is negligible.”

I'm not actually sure what my answer means, and do not know if that counts as cheating. It must, because in response she says the heavy word. The word that echoes louder than any other. I’m not sure which one it is. I know I wrote it down here somewhere. I look down the river.

She keeps saying the word and I curl up into a ball and clutch my head. Why does she keep saying it? Can’t she see how much it hurts me? Does she hate me because I make her so sad?

But there is that warmth in her voice when she says the hard word. As much as it hurts, part of me doesn’t want her to stop saying it.

I focus on the word and on the flames. I came something out through the pain.

There are words. I think some are mine, but I am not certain. Maybe they are all mine. I can’t tell where the words end and I begin. Maybe that line doesn’t exist. Maybe it burned away with everything else.

I wish I could tell you why he does not help.

He’s not able to.

Twilight, do you think you could elaborate for Luna and me?

The hammer crashes against my skull.

He calls himself the Spirit of Chaos, but that’s not really right. His manifestations obey rules and operate in a predictable, logical manner. Perhaps they are different rules than what we are used to, but he isn’t really chaotic. He isn’t exactly unharmonious either. More alien than anything else. But it’s all about… It’s all about chaos theory, which really has nothing to do with chaos as most ponies understand it. Really its about small things all adding up to large effects.

Twilight, I’m not really certain I follow.

My horn splinters. The word shatters my spine. My world breaks and reforms.

At one point… I spent some time trying to figure out his magic. He’s not all powerful… He manipulates quantum probability and random chance. Weather patterns, biological mutations, quantum foam...He can cause things to spontaneously or rapidly change and transmogrify, but he can’t make something from nothing.

Twilight.

The pain explodes behind my eyes. I push forward.

He has very good showmanship. If there were still ponies alive, he could twist and transform their bodies however he wished. But he can’t heal the blight. Its radiological properties are non-nuclear in nature. If it had a half-life he could twist things to speed it up and clean everything up at the very least. But it doesn’t work that way. The magic that… It’s a set duration. A fixed time, with no room for chance. Death for a thousand years.

How do you know that?

The question is a good one. A very good riddle. An important riddle. How do I know that?

Because I designed it.

The smoke becomes thicker and I can’t see the conversation any longer.

“Twilight, do you mind if I speak with Luna for a moment?”

It is a riddle but one that I can not even process through the pain. I scream, begging her to stop. I don’t deserve that word. Only good ponies deserve smiles.

Something rubs my muzzle and the pain begins to recede.

Twilight

I want to whimper, but instead I try to lean into her touch.

I don’t do either.

+++

I blinked my eyes and everything shifted. That happens a lot. One moment I am in one place, and the next I am somewhere else. The sun will jump across the sky in great leaps and bounds. Night will suddenly turn to day, or day to night.

I don’t think those things are supposed to happen, but I'm not sure. I always have more important things to focus on when it happens.

I think there was some sort of game. The two mares played it while I blinked. They were digging around in holes. Maybe they were hiding? Maybe they weren’t mares at all. I think ostriches would do that. Hide in holes. Ostriches stuck their heads in holes. Could I be an ostrich?

Maybe it would be nice to be an ostrich. I bet I could hide from the fire then.

I think I made the nice mare happy for a short time.

But then one of the mares said something important. I grapple it and force it to understanding.

I understand the dark mare's words.

So I’m brain damaged or something. I’m not really certain.

I think the dark mare said that I am a simpleton.

Is that right?

Am I simpleton? I still think I am smart. I still feel smart. But I can’t really do anything to prove it, can I? Maybe this is what it’s like to be a… what’s the nice word? A challenged pony? Is that what I am now?

It seems like it would make the puzzle pieces fit.

Is this it then?

Somehow, I had hoped that the puzzles would start making sense. I’ve been trying to get better at them. I really have. You need to believe me. I try my best.

But they don’t really get any easier, just more painful.

And maybe that’s because I’m just not smart. I’m a stupid pony.

A smart pony would know how to tell the nice pony that she is nice.

I have demons to face. The dark mare said that. I think she is smart, so she is probably right, but it doesn’t seem right. I’m not sure what a demon is, so I can’t really understand the puzzle. I should probably trust her though. I know that she is smart. The nice mare seems to like her and that is good enough for her.

Maybe I can make a… What’s the word? A check?

I’m a simpleton.

I have? Maybe it was “I am,” I don’t remember. I am a demon? I have a dream-on?

No not a check, a list.

I felt like this would help but it doesn’t seem to do anything. A list has more than two things. The puzzle is still incomprehensible.

At least I know what I am now.

When I blink, things seem to shift again. We are all huddled around the nice mare now.

Her voice is soothing even if the words are just a stream of confusion.

I can recognize it as a story, even if I’m not smart enough to follow along with it anymore. Her voice is comforting, and as a brush moves through my mane I feel a sense of ease.

It doesn’t hurt as bad right now.

This is nice.

The next time I blink I am someplace else.

I’m in the place with the falling books again.

This place is strange. It is easier to go from book to book, flipping through and finding the pages that I want. But it is harder to keep them organized. As soon as I hop off of my papery platform, I will lose the book in the cloud of knowledge.

Still, I think I like this place of books.

My body and mind are in agreement here. There is no struggle to move my hoof or to get my tongue to move the way I want it. I don’t seem to be able to rely on my body doing things automatically here, but it is well worth the control.

My library is the best place to find the answers, even if it is hard to hold onto them.

The dark mare is here in my library. She does not usually show up here. We talk, and it feels…

It feels clear. I’m not sure if I remember ever talking to a pony in my library before, but surrounded by books, the usual riddles do not seem to be there. Or maybe I am just faster at solving them in this place.

I want to ask her if I am a simpleton. I want to know what that word means, but I think it will upset her. We are having a nice conversation, and she wants to know if I am happy.

I get to spend my days with the nice pony. She reads me stories, even if I cannot understand them, and sometimes even talks to me about magic. I used to like magic.

Of course I am happy.

I just wish that I could make her happy.

I leap to another book, and I find what I had been looking for. It contains my research.

I hear them. They are screaming. Light, they’re screaming so loud. They’re coming for me.

Light, light, light…

I can’t get away, there is no place to run, no place that I can go where I won’t be able to hear their screams.

I burrow into my book. I know it will not shield me. It barely blocks out the sound, but I don’t know what else to do.

Their screams and flames consume me.

In a brilliant moment of perfect, horrible clarity I understand.

All the puzzle pieces that I have been struggling with fall into place.

And, light, it hurts.

Light, it hurts. It hurts so much. It was just a tingle at first, but then it began to itch, and then it began to burn. I feel my blood boiling. They’re hurting me. They are hurting me so much. Please make it stop. Light, make it stop. Please make it stop. Why won’t you make it stop?

“I’m here for you Twilight.”

The pressure compounds the pain.

They hurt me. They hurt me.

How long has it been?

I can feel it all slipping away. I understood, but not the books… They are all falling through my hooves. I can’t catch them. They are all unsorted.

I fall asleep again, but I do not return to the place of falling books. I don’t think I sleep for long.

The pretty mare is asking another riddle. It’s one that does not expect a response, I can tell that from the shape and color of the words. I stare intently as I realized that she is telling me the answer to the more important riddle. She is telling me how to make her smile.

“Sometimes… Sometimes I wonder if it would be better if she wasn’t. Would it have been better if I hadn’t started her breathing again? What kind of life is this? It’s so hard always taking care of her. When I have to feed her…”

I feel a vice gripping me and I cannot breathe. In the distance I can hear the roaring thunder of pain running through my body.

“... sorry Twilight... Please Twilight...”

The hammer blows strike far worse than the vice.

It’s the nice mare hitting me.

“Twilight...”

I cannot even collapse as the vice is holding me in place as the pressure increases.

She leaves the room. I think she was crying. I made her cry again.

I…

I…

I…

I get it now. I know why the nice mare is always so sad.

I must really be a stupid filly to take so long to solve the riddle.

It’s me.

I make her sad.

I'm an awful pony.

I may not be smart anymore, but I can at least solve this problem. I just need to go away. Then she can smile again. She and the other mare can have fun without worrying about me.

So I disappear.

+++

Full Implications of Disaster Still Unknown

Last week we were the first news outlet to report the disaster at Gallobyl, and still ponies are reeling from the implications.

Early reports indicate the disaster may have been caused by tainted crystals illegally imported from the Crystal Empire. However, while the true cause of the catastrophe is still unknown, one thing is certain. The damage is wide spread, and in many ponies' opinions the government has been far to slow to respond.

"We're still evacuating ponies," said the mayor of Gallobyl.

Ironically, while many ponies feel that the official Peacekeepers have been nowhere to be seen, it has been the princesses with their ceremonial guard who have been spearheading the humanitarian aid. Princess Celestia has been spotted walking through the medical tents, providing what help she can, while Princess Luna has been comforting those beyond saving. As for Princess Twilight, she has been at ground zero tirelessly working on maintaining containment.

It seems that even in our new Equestria, the princesses still-

Author's Notes:

Twilight chapter.

I hope the shift in perspective worked well.

We've got another Twilight chapter coming up next (and real soon). It's already written; I just need to write the post chapter newspaper article. It's going to be short though.

Chapter Seven - Chaos

You poor thing. I remember what you were like you know? You were brilliant once. Somewhere in there I think you are brilliant still. I’m not sure if I ever told you just how much I appreciated your friendship. You showed me a better way. I always thought I could not be myself without being alone. You and your friends helped me see the light.

I don’t have any friends.

Oh, you poor thing.

I’m not sure what that is.

It’s not your fault you know.

They are words.

But I suppose deep down you know that. That’s not your problem, is it? Sometimes ponies simply break.

They have meaning. I can understand the meaning. It’s like a dozen different pieces all spontaneously coming together by pure chance.

I wish I could do something for you, I really do.

I think it is a voice.

But your mind… It is the last bastion of chaos in this dreary wasteland. All of this destruction is nothing but order in its purest, bleakest form.

It is definitely a voice.

I want to do something for you, I really do… But I think you are the only thing keeping me alive.

It’s not mine. It’s not coming from me.

Even if I wanted to help though, there is not much I can do. All the shelves are gone. I can’t replace those. I can’t make something out of nothing.

“The manipulation of probability?”

How did you figure so much out about my magic anyway? I thought I had been clever. But then again, I suppose you always were a clever pony.

I recognize the voice. I’ve heard it before. But it’s not coming from the outside. It’s whispering into my mind.

I’m sorry. I really am, and… No! I can’t leave a friend like this.

All around me the wasteland is filled with books, scattered about. I look around and see that I am the only pony here. Dust billows in the air.

I can’t do much, not with the shelves gone. But I can help a little.

A wind swirls around me, opening all the books and they flip through their pages. As I look at the cloud of dust I think I see it forming a face.

Ahh, yes. I’m afraid a solid form, even a mismatched one is too much for me now. Ponies are a source of such chaos. They fight; they argue. Ponies love and hate. They are inconsistent and change their minds. They are even capable of believing in two contradictory beliefs at once. Ponies are so beautiful in all of their complexity. But once a pony is dead? It is just dead. There is nothing else. No chance, only the slow rate of decay with minor variation at best.

“Discord.”

Very good, little Twilight. Let me give you an award. I think I’ve found the books you need.

I watch as the dust seems to lift up various texts and sorts them into piles around me. The field of books is still there. Most of them are still scattered and untouched, but the piles are within hoof reach.

I know they are all just going to get jumbled up again the next time that you fall. It’s impossible to really sort them without the shelves. But maybe just for a little while you can be more like your old self, and maybe it will make my little sisters happy.

A word pierces through my haze. “Sisters?”

Nothing for you to worry about. Ah, I should probably move these books somewhere else. I don’t see how they can help you now.

I see a few nearby texts fly far from me, landing out with the books near the edge of my vision. As they land against the ground with a thud, it seems like the cloud of dust is growing less substantial.

I am afraid that helping you sort through this mess has taken a lot out of me. I think even a random cloud of dust is too much now. I suppose I’ll let all my bits scatter on the wind to the ends of Equestria. Eventually some of my particles will find one another again, and what a lovely moment of chance that will be.

The dust is blowing away. But it is hesitating. It is waiting for something.

Finally Sunbutt is here. I was wondering how long it would take her.

The cloud no longer has form.

I suppose I really overdid it this time. Hopefully I’ll see you again in a few hundred years, though I don’t know if you’ll notice the passage of time. But maybe we’ll run into one another in only a few months. That’s the nature of chaos after all. Ahh, I can feel all of my parts going every which way. It is glorious…

The voice was gone.

“Luna, I found her.”

It was a different voice. A voice from the outside. I recognized it and felt that it was important that I understand what it was saying.

I can feel some sort of warmth enveloping me, and pressure on all sides. I don’t know what it is, but it feels good. I like feeling warm.

“Oh, Twilight, don’t you go wandering off on me.” Was the voice crying? “I was so worried.”

I can sense the word, but it does not crash against me this time. I lean into the warmth, but look down.

The cloud has left me a stack of books and I want to understand. I begin to furiously page through the books around me while I enjoy the warmth. Somewhere I would find meaning. This is an important riddle. I need to answer this one.

“Please Twilight, you need to promise me. I didn’t mean what I said earlier. I won’t ever leave you alone again. Just promise me you won’t scare me like that again.”

I want to make the voice happy. I want to make the voice stop crying. This is the most important puzzle she has ever given me.

I put my hoof down square in the center of a page. I found the words I was looking for.

“Celestia, I’m sorry.” I finally manage to say.

+++

Approval Rate Drops

For the fifth straight month, polls have shown a drop in the approval rate of the majority party’s administration.

When questioned, most ponies seem to blame Minister Glowing Radience's reluctance to expand Equestria's sphere of influence and inability to find a solution for the current crisis plaguing Equestria.

In the last week, wildfires have been burning outside of Trottingham. The origin of the fires has been attributed to cutbacks in local weather regulation and a failure in Equestria's response.

Said one source, "Something should have been done about this as soon as ponies knew it was a problem. Instead, we are just now talking about mobilizing rain from Cloudsdale?"

Author's Notes:

I said this chapter would be short.

Story Edit: 1/23/15
So I goofed. In an earlier chapter I had Twilight refer to Celestia by name. I should NOT have done that. I've gone back and edited that out of the offending lines of dialog. The close of this chapter is the first time in the story that Twilight has found Celestia's name.

It happened because the very first scene I wrote was Twilight waking up from her nightmare. At this point in time, Twilight was going to be in a lot of chronic pain, but still was going to be functioning. Then I thought, where's the fun in that. Twilight needs to be utterly broken.

Anyway, sorry if that took away some of the punch of this chapters close.

Other Stuff:
This chapter was originally going to be second person from Discord's perspective, but then I realized that he didn't have a cutie mark for me to use as a chapter heading.

I came very close to ending the entire story here, and just making the whole thing a bleak snapshot in time with no indication of how long they have been wandering and how long they might remain wandering. However, I decided that it left too many dangling plotlines and I would take it further. That being said, I feel that I could mark this as complete here and be more or less satisfied.

Time for me to bounce back to Equestria's Twilight for a week of so, then we have a Celestia chapter coming up next.