“Hrk-!”
“You okay, sugarcube?”
Everyone’s attention turned to the retching and convulsing dragon. None of the ponies – not even Twilight – had ever seen this before. Had it been a regular letter from the Princess, a simple belch would have delivered the message, not induce a Spike clutching at his belly, gasping for air.
“Hoo boy… Gack!”
And as if the heavens opened, out shot a scroll. Not adorned in the traditional green flames, not adorned with the Royal Seal. Perhaps most strangely, wrapped with what could only be described as the flimsiest rope known to pony. Following the projectile letter until it skidded to a halt somewhere between “Late-Modern History of Equestria” to “Cooking”, the mares turned back to their little dragonfriend, lying on the floor, evidently in pain.
“I hope I never have to experience anything like that ever again…”
Slipping a gem into his mouth, his adoptive sister lifted the scroll and began reading to the sound of crunching. Only two words in, she was able to recognize the handwriting and proclaimed rather loudly upon realizing the sender.
“What would my parents send me a letter for? They don’t contact me very often. I hope it’s nothing bad…”
“Tell your parents *cough* to use conventional mail next time… *hack*”
“Well, darling, what does it say? If one’s family doesn’t get in touch that commonly, then surely it would be for some cause, would it not?”
With a look of half-agreement and half-worry, the unicorn began to read out loud.
“Dear Twilight Sparkle,

How are you, dear? Are you keeping yourself well in Ponyville? The Princess told us all about your adventures, your new friends, and everything! It was so exciting to hear about this. You have no idea how proud we are of you and Spike! Oh, if only we could see your face now, we’ll bet you’ve grown into a beautiful young mare…”
“Huh… Sounds like typical family mumbo jumbo to me. Skip to the sweet bit!”
Excitement seemed to be the only thing on the chromatic pegasus’ mind. Giving her only a scornful look, Twilight Sparkle followed the letter to the next paragraph. Whatever it was could be read later, she thought.
“Anyway, onto the main subject of this message. You probably picked up on the fact that your father and I do not write often, and it saddens me to inform you that this letter bears dark news. Of course, such grief must be delivered in person, and so I would kindly request that you return to Canterlot for about a week or so. I apologize for the short notice, but believe me when I say that this is one matter of the utmost importance. Feel free to bring your friends and Spike, there is more than enough room for all of us.”
“Oh my, w-what do you think happened?”
“I dunno, Fluttershy, but I know my parents – they’re as no-nonsense as I am, and if this letter is anything to go by, I won’t be keeping my hopes up for a simple family reunion.”
“Well, the letter did say you could bring friends, and we’re your friends, right, right? So you should TOTALLY take us to Canterlot with you! It’d be tons of fun, and I could throw you and your parents a party so that you guys can take your mind off whatever sad story has hit your family oh that reminds I’ve never actually met your parents before seeing as you’ve never told us about them which I think is really weird because there must be some reason they don’t come up in conversation much maybe this letter has something to do with that and the dark matter they are talking about is that they feel estranged from you and maybe they-”
“Pinkie.”
“-Oop. Sorry.”
A quick mull over a few choices didn’t take long. If it wasn’t so important, they would’ve come to visit personally. This had to be a matter of dire proportions. And inviting her friends to stay for a week? Something was unnecessarily off. And yet… Something told Twilight that she had to go. Letting out a small sigh, she turned to the five fillies.
“Pack your bags, girls. We’re going home.”
“Yeah! Road trip!”

“Oh darling!”
“Welcome home, buttercup!”
Stifled laughter at the nickname passed by the pony in question.
“Oh, and you must be Twilight’s friends! Hello, please come in!”
It had been years since Twilight Sparkle visited her home. Her parents looked the same as ever, if not for bags under their eyes. The rooms were similar, if not for a few more trinkets on each surface. Everything seemed normal. It was as Rainbow Dash originally suggested – just a normal reunion. There was something different, though. Something very off.
“You must be Fluttershy, oh, we’ve heard all about you. Oh, and you too, Miss Rarity, please make yourself at home! Ah, Rainbow Dash, I presume? Ah, Miss Pinkie Pie, welcome! And hello to you too, Miss Applejack. Oh, it’s wonderful to see our daughter has made so many wonderful friends!”
“Spike, be a dear and show these girls to their rooms. Buttercup, your room is still there, just as you left it. Settle yourselves down for now, the journey here must have been tiresome. We’ll talk more over dinner.”
As the seven ascended the stairs, they all exchanged quizzical glances. First they all looked at Twilight Sparkle, the same question on their minds. Without a word, Twilight simply nodded. Yes, they are normally this chipper. She turned back to her friends. A shrug. A nod. A turning away. Everyone was equally confused. So far, there was nothing grim or dark. Her parents were still there, the house was still standing, so what could be wrong?

“Oh, I say, Mrs Sparkle, this cream of tomato is absolutely amazing! You know, my mother prepared a very similar dish for me when I was but a small filly.”
“Thank you, Miss Rarity; it’s good to see you’re enjoying your meal.”
“U-umm, could I possibly trouble you for a napkin, please? If that’s not too much trouble, that is.”
“Of course, dearie. Pinkie Pie, could you be a sweetheart and pass this over?”
“Okie dokie lokie, Mr Sparkle!”
Dinner was normal. Everything was normal. Perhaps a little too normal.
“So…” toying with her spoon, Twilight finally spoke up. “What was so urgent you needed to whisk me and my friends here on zero notice?”
And there is was. The moment of hesitation from her parents. They glanced at each other, giving each other a look that would set off every alarm bell, even from those of the most dim-witted ponies. Almost as if straining themselves to say this, they put down their cutlery, and cleared their throats.
“Twilight, dear… There’s something you need to know.”
“…It’s about your brother, Frost Nexus.”
The mention of a brother almost caused Pinkie Pie to choke, and did force Rainbow Dash to spew her soup all over the unfortunate pony opposite her. The five mares stared at their friend, wondering what new facet of her life she never mentioned to them would be uncovered next. Squeezing the soup out of her mane, Twilight responded to her parents.
“I haven’t seen him since he graduated the Military Academy. Why?”
Another hesitant silence, this one more cutting than the one that preceded it.
“You’re a grown mare now, dear, so we won’t beat around the bush.”
“As you know, the moment your brother graduated the Military Academy, he was immediately placed into the Praetorian Guard. Words could not describe how proud we were; he was the first non-alicorn pony to make the squad…”
“Of course, when it comes to ice magic and combat sorcery, Frost is better than me!”
“That’s exactly right dear. And that’s what makes this next piece of news even harder to bear…”
Everyone knew what was coming next. Even so, they stared at Twilight’s parents, awestruck, unable to turn away. This is why they had invited the entire gang – giving Twilight the support she would doubtlessly need. They had all heard the name before. Frost Nexus. Entered the Military Academy with the highest entrance exam score ever recorded, and graduated straight into the Praetorian Guard –a group of highly-trained stallions that acted as an entire squadron of officers each. Answering only to the Princess, they were the highest level of military known to pony. To even be considered for a position as one of the “Power Nine”, as they were referred to, was an honour in itself. The group had no leadership, as it operated on its own capabilities. Each unit assigned his own missions, and went about his own work. They were solitary figures, each delivering justice their own way. An autonomous unit composed of a motley crew, each piece of the puzzle unbreakable and brilliant in its own right. So what was wrong?
“Less than a year ago your brother had returned home for a very short period of time. He was told that with Rapier Slim retiring from the armed forces, he would be expected to be the next leader of the Praetorian Guard. Surely, the highest accolade obtainable amongst ponies.”
“…He accepted, with no hesitation. He threw himself into his work even harder than before.”
“His name was being rung out throughout all of Canterlot. He was the only one who even maintained a grounded relationship with the common citizens. All the others were busy flying around and dealing with whatever crisis they took on. Frost chose a quieter path, keeping peace wherever he could, not letting anything blur who he was. He would still leave for days at a time, coming back significantly weathered from whatever great undertaking he had decided upon, of course. Why, one time, he returned with his uniform completely obliterated! He claimed he had fought off a dragon that was attacking a small village! How daring!”
All the fillies listened intently as Moondancer spoke about her son’s heroics at length. How he restored unrest amongst the citizens of Ravneighca. How he restored life and vegetation to Horyn-Shadowhoof after their extreme drought. How he had banished the invasion of the machines on Mareodin. Twilight Sparkle had known her brother was being the absolute best of a pony he was, but these stories fascinated her greatly. That is, until her mother’s tone dropped.
“And then we reach a week ago…”
“What happened?”
Her father spoke up, taking the cue that his wife couldn’t continue.
“It was the oddest of messages. Frost himself came home to tell us of something new and amazing. Something that would revolutionize life as we knew it. He and the rest of the Praetorian Guard had developed a very special spell. One that required the absolute best of magical strength. He claimed it change nature, and bring peace to Equestria once and for all.”
“What? Why would he do such a thing? That doesn’t sound like him!”
“No, and it wasn’t. What had happened was that in the leading months to that day, he realized what it meant to do what he did. He sacrificed himself – quite literally, in some cases – for the good of all Equestria. He would visit often, but each time, a lifeless shell of the colt we once knew and loved. He longer showed emotion, favourites, love, or anger, or anything! It was as if, he had been so pre-occupied with his duty, that he was no longer alive.”
“Oh no…”
“Now, fortunately, he was a Sparkle. And as I always say, ‘We sparkles have that spark!”” A pause. A solemn one. “And your brother was no exception. He was not completely lost. He mentioned how he noticed that the past three leaders all became lifeless and tiresome. He realized he was consigning himself to that fate – one of no misery, but of no sadness, either. Just doing what is “right” and what is “good”, even if those definitions were now becoming blurry. He didn’t want to just resign and pass on a bleak life of a protector, either. This was his plan. To make a situation where the Praetorian Guard themselves were no longer needed. So that nopony would ever have to force themselves into a life of seclusion for others again.”
“A spell to wipe out all evil in Equestria? That is utter madness if my ears had ever heard any before!”
“That is what we understood at first, also, Miss Rarity. However, we were wrong. We asked him to elaborate, and he simply claimed that “nopony understands the grand scheme of things!” He would yell about “six corners” and “consistency.” We didn’t understand. Until that fateful day.”

“He finally explained what he was planning. He had uncovered a magic that would allow him to replicate himself, all entities sharing a single hivemind.”
“That’s crazy talk! Why did the Princesses not talk him out of it?”
“They did. Or rather, they tried. Nothing would change his mind. He was adamant about his choice. Serving the Princesses and Equestria was his life, and his only remaining passion, but he wanted a life outside of fighting and ice. We tried to convince him also, but he wouldn’t listen. He just kept saying “It’s the only way, the only way.””
Tears had now started at her cheeks. She struggled to tell her daughter what was coming next.
“Five days ago, he claimed he had cracked it. He said he had seen into something he called “The Alph,” and that it was all suddenly clear. That afternoon he gathered the strangest collection of ingredients. A branch of oak. Bark of juniper. Elm leaves. Birch seeds. Rowan berries. We had no idea what was to transpire until it happened.”
“What did happen?”
“He froze himself. His horn glowed, and his eyes shone to match. The spell would involve a dangerous process of preserving his body, and releasing replicas as time went on. He had crossed the event horizon. There was no getting him back unless the spell succeeded.”
Twilight’s eyes widened. Any more would throw her over the edge. Even though the message had been brought across, her father finished the paragraph anyway, if only for completeness’s sake.
“It didn’t.”
She was bawling alongside her mother, mourning the loss of a brother she had only known for so long.
“Oh my… I’m terribly sorry for your loss, dear.”
“H-he sounded like a very noble pony, it’s such a s-shame…”
“Life deals us all wildcards now ‘n again, sugarcube. Ah reck’n he’s in a better place now.”
She was surrounded by her friends, all in a warm embrace, one that only relieved the pain slightly.
Finally mustering up the strength to stand on her own, she feebly asked her mother, when’s the ceremony?
“Tomorrow afternoon.”
“Rest up now, buttercup. We understand how painful it must be.”
Without a word, the purple unicorn trotted up the stairs alone. Moondancer turned to her daughter’s friends.
“Thank you all for coming and lending her a shoulder of support. She needs it the most, I’m sure.”
“Aw shucks, t’weren’t nuthin’, ma’am. She’d do the same fer us if we needed it.”
The white mare nodded back.
“All I ask now is that you stay with her as long as she needs it.”
One by one, the ponies marched up to their room, knowing that what little sleep they got would be a darned sight more than their magical friend.

Her room was empty. She was in his bed. His posters of video games and cartoons still adorned the room. White and blue paint to match his mane coloured the walls. His desk, littered with hobbies and books hadn’t been touched by any pony other than himself. Out of curiosity, Twilight got up and inspected his desk – a complete contrast to hers. No work was done on it. There was not a piece of stationary in sight. It looked to be more like a planning board for whatever game he got up to. She read a card. Vigilance? Trample? Undying? 5/4? She didn’t bother continuing; his hobbies were his hobbies, and she didn’t understand them at all. But sitting alone in the room reminded her of all the memories she had of him. Of him teaching her to teleport. Of them catching butterflies together. Of him practicing his legendary “Flying Crystal Strike” so that he could “defend his little sister from any harm.” Each memory brought another tear to her eye.

She only knew who he was, and not who he became. It was that which hurt her the most. To the public, he was simply national hero, one taken in his prime due to a “terrible accident”. She held this view of him for a while herself, and it was the realization that she knew him the best that only caused her tears to flow harder.
In the end, he was just a normal stallion, just like her; ordinary hobbies, ordinary dreams, ordinary thoughts. He just had a higher duty.
She spotted the framed certificate on the wall of his honorary doctorate in Arcane Mathematics, awarded by the University of Prinstallion, “in honour of invaluable contribution to trigonometric binding spells.” Twilight had learnt those herself only a while ago. Not too far was a poster of a musical group, Boo Battlers. They’d won an award not too long ago for their single “Short Road to Ruin”. In the far corner of the room, resting on the bedside table, however, was something that caught her eye. Next to a framed photo of the two siblings, was a small stuffed doll. A shambles in construction – only one eye, arm falling off, baggy pair of shorts, and the scraggliest mane you could imagine. To the normal pony, useless junk. To Twilight Sparkle, Professor CleverBrain.
“Oh Celestia, what I would’ve given to have some more time with him... Oh dear brother…”
Clutching the doll in her hands, she let herself bawl at full force. Further down the corridor, five ponies could do naught but listen as a lonely mare’s tears fell in the night, it’s significance more than anypony could imagine.