Original Link:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1X4URwqwaFnzu_kgfL3avEICGIHR1DpK10TGC5m9QIFc/edit?usp=sharing

It was no easy task to find out exactly where Margspakr had his lair. The description of the dragon was very vague and just as this one, all the others had very little interest in helping a group of creatures that only appeared tiny and meaningless to them. But after sailing around randomly once again, they eventually managed to arrive on the correct island, even though they all pretty much looked the same: Dark rock, running lava, crowded with dragons. Only as they started climbing did they realize that what made this island special was the fact that nearly all dragons living on it had no wings. They were a lot bulkier and sturdier looking than their flying cousins, kind of like comparing a pegasus to an earth pony. Twilight once again came to realize that there is next to nothing known about the dragons and if they actually have different sub-species. She as well had to admit that she did not pay enough attention to how the dragons looked like to really be able to tell any difference. The only thing she noticed was that most young dragons had very unique shapes and appearances. Apparently, they would lose their imbalanced bodily appearance as they age and shape into adults to annihilate weaknesses.

Pondering upon these thoughts, Twilight kept looking around in search for the cave in which the ancient dragon would be hiding. The flying members of her group were eager to scout the area, but the purple mare forbid them to spread. So deep in their territories, none of them could predict the dragons’ reactions. There was a constant risk of one spontaneously deciding to attack the group, inspiring plenty of others to join in and utterly destroy the little group like a swarm of armored, flying, firebreathing piranhas. A slower pace was an acceptable trade for the increased security of sticking around in numbers. So the group remained together, scanning everything around them. They had to watch the sky, the ground, the obstacles and of course the dragons. So many potential hazards. The Flaming Islands certainly were not a very welcoming place.

Suddenly, Twilight stopped. Her eyes were wide open and even her jaw dropped slightly. Her friends were about to snap her out of it and ask her what was wrong before they turned their own heads towards what she was seeing, gaining stunned expressions themselves.

A fully grown wingless dragon. Most of its body was covered in purple scales, but from the neck to the belly, it had green scales, as well as green spines, claws and eyes.

Twilight couldn’t help herself. She just needed to know. Abandoning her own words and plans, she broke out of the group and started running straight over to the purple and green dragon. Of course, it saw her coming from far away, closely observing as she approached and eventually halted with some respectful distance.

“What do you want, little pony?” the dragon spoke in a feminine voice, giving away that it was actually a dragoness.

Twilight was flustered. She knew what she wanted to say, but the sight alone made her mind get flooded with memories. She needed a moment to sort her thoughts before she could respond.

“Excuse me… Um… I… You look very familiar to me. I once knew a young dragon that looked almost exactly like you,” the purple mare mumbled.

“So what?” the dragoness wanted to know.

“I was just wondering if there might be any chance you could have been related to said dragon. His name was Spike. Have you ever heard of him?” Twilight wondered.

“That’s not a dragon name. Sounds more like something one of you ponies would name a dragon,” the wingless dragoness responded, then started scratching her chin in thought. “Wait a moment… Ah, yes. I remember. I laid an egg a couple of years ago. Really annoying. But I guess that is why I’m actually tolerating you in my territory. Made a good experience with you ponies back then.”

“What do you mean?” Fluttershy wondered after she and the rest caught up.

“There is nothing more annoying to a dragoness than having to watch over eggs and hatchlings. Baby dragons take decades to even become teenagers if they don’t get nurtured with enough gems and greed. Do I look like I had the patience to do something so tedious?” the dragoness replied.

“Then, what does this have to do with us ponies?” Twilight asked again.

“Just days after I laid that egg, I got fed up with it. I was just about to throw it away when a pony showed up and asked me if he could have it, since I don’t want it. He said some nonsense about knowing a school in some pony city that would love to have something like that. Didn’t care then and don’t care now. I was just glad I got rid of that egg, one way or the other,” the dragoness answered.

Once more, Twilight became silent and stunned. Her focus slowly lowered from the face of the dragoness and wandered to the ground. It was clear to her friends right away that this really hit her.

“Don’t overstay your welcome. I was only going to answer that question. Now get lost,” the dragoness demanded.

Without saying a word, Twilight just turned around and left. Her focus returned to a neutral one, but the others could still clearly tell that something was stirring inside of her.

“Are you okay, Twily?” Shining Armor asked in worry.

The purple mare made a short gesture, telling him and the others to wait for a moment. Apparently, she tried her best to hold herself together while they were still in line of sight of any dragon. Only after they walked around a large rock were at least the purple and green dragoness couldn’t see them anymore, she suddenly stopped and sat down. Twilight let her ears hanging as she stared at the rocky ground. She sniffled a bit, but refused to cry.

“To think that Spike’s genetic mother just threw him away like that before he even hatched… He almost would have never made it past his egg shell,” she spoke quietly, rubbing her eyes one at a time. “Did you hear how casual she was about all this? Spike meant the world to me and she would just have let him die.”

“Try thinking about it the other way round, Twilight,” Cadence suggested. “If she hadn’t denied Spike, you two would have never met.”

“I know… But the worst part about all this is… He once set out to try and find his roots. He so wanted to know where he came from and what it meant to be a dragon. Even though this is pretty horrible knowledge, he would have wanted… no… even needed to hear that. Why must I find out about this now… While he is dead for years already…” Twilight responded.

“We are aware of how much you still suffer from the loss of your adoptive son, Twilight,” Luna started, placing a front hoof on the purple mare’s shoulder. “You also may not like to hear this, but… The past is the past. What happened, happened. It can not be undone. All that is left for us is to move forward, no matter what is thrown at us.”

Twilight did not respond. She just sat there for a moment longer, staring at the floor and letting the memories flood through her head. After a few moments, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath and got up again.

“I know that… Let’s find the cave already…” she spoke and started walking.

The others followed mutely. Even the minotaurs seemed to feel condolence for what their leader had gone though. With the focus being on Twilight, Celestia could allow herself a moment to let down her facade. She stared at the floor, regret filling her entire being. Once again, she made a terrible mistake. All the time, she knew where Spike came from. She was the one who had to agree to the Canterlot School for gifted unicorns getting the egg, so she knew the whole story. If only she had known much sooner that this information was actually very important to both Twilight and Spike. These details just keep slipping her mind, which is why they ended up in this position in the first place. At times, Celestia wondered if it really was such a good idea for her to get back on the throne.

---

It only took a few minutes more before they finally found what they were searching for. A wide, dark and steep tunnel, leading into the darkness. Already being occupied with memories of the past, this quickly came to remind Twilight of her very first mission against a demon: the fight against the Spawn in the Everfree Underground Passage.

Obsidian had warned them. Demons surely were and still are the most dangerous enemies Twilight and her friends ever faced, but it all seemed so much easier back then. Despite Obsidian’s warnings, they underestimated these monsters. Now, it was once more time for Twilight to decent into the darkness, looking for hidden knowledge.

The path was tricky. Even though the ground was solid and few loose rocks were present, they still had to be careful not to slip. At the recommendation of the minotaurs and griffons, the ponies decided to tie themselves to each other and let their allies make sure they get down safely. Streams of lava illuminated the cave, soon revealing that it actually was an emptied out lava chamber. If this was the work of dragons or of natural cause could not be clearly told, but it certainly provided enough space for a fully grown dragon to live in, even if just barely.

As they reached the bottom, Twilight and her friends started to look around again. Where was he? One would suspect that something as big as a dragon could easily be spotted.

“Hello? Hello!” Twilight called.

Suddenly, the whole cave started to shake. It was not long before they came to realize that they were standing right on top of the ancient dragon. As the mares shrieked, fearing to fall and get crushed underneath this giant lizard, the movement stopped. Instead, a large head rose out of the dark, turning towards them.

Gray eyes as large as Celestia once used to be stared at them sleepily. The dragon did not move. It just kept on watching, seemingly waiting for further words.

“Um… hello…” Twilight started again. “Sorry if we woke you up.”

“Don’t worry about that. I spent most of my time asleep anyway and since I didn’t have visitors in centuries, this is a very pleasant change,” the dragon spoke in a gentle tone, then his eyes wandered over to Celestia, Luna and Cadence. “It is an honor to meet pony royalty.”

“You know about us?” Luna wondered.

“Most of my kin may not care for other species, but I try to stay informed as best as I can in here. These walls echo with the voices on the surface. I heard rumors of your land having fallen to terrible monsters. My sincerest commiseration,” the dragon spoke.

He definitely was a lot more friendly and understanding than any other member of his species they had met so far. No doubt, this was Margspakr. After so much hostility, it felt really good to be welcome for a change.

“Pardon me, but may I ask of you to step down from me? My joints are not what they used to be anymore and this position is starting to get painful,” he requested.

“Oh, sorry, of course!” Twilight responded hastily.

The purple mare looked around for a moment, trying to find the quickest way down from him. Though Margspakr himself offered them a solution. He reached his claw down to them and spread it open as a platform for them to stand on. Twilight immediately stepped on it, but the others hesitated. After all, he was a dragon. He just needed to clench his claws and they would all instantly get turned to mush. But with a serious glance of the purple mare, the others were encouraged to display some trust to this dragon and climbed on as well. The ride was short, but gentle. He simply carried them to a nearby platform on a wall, then waited until they all got on it before he eventually started lifting himself out of the ground. The sound of several tons of gravel falling to the ground echoed against the walls with incredible noise. As the dragon got upright, they could see lava running down from his belly and a huge bubbling crater beneath him. With this additional source of light, the ponies could finally make out the appearance of this dragon. He was enormous, very thin and of a dirty gray color. Barely any scales on his body were not scratched or chipped. His eyes seemed very milky, indicating that he was suffering from cataract and nearly blind. Overall, he made a very weak appearance, barely capable of even keeping himself upright.

“If you have come to ask for help to retake your land, I am afraid I won’t be much of a help to you. Had this happened a thousand years earlier or so, I would have gladly fought for you. But it seems my old age won’t allow me to undertake such an adventure anymore,” Margspakr apologized.

“There is no need to feel sorry. We came here to learn and negotiate,” Twilight replied.

“Again, I am sad to disappoint. In your culture, the old and wise may be respected, but dragons only care for strength. The only reason I still have this small territory here at all is due to me using my knowledge to outsmart challengers. I will not be able to inspire them to join your cause,” the old dragon apologized again.

“Well, aside of that, there is another thing we hoped you could help us with,” the purple mare started anew, then gave Rarity a look to step over to her. “My friend here is suffering from a lethal curse called the Kiss of Death. I have turned half of the world upside down in search for a cure, but couldn’t find one so far. Do you have any knowledge on that matter?”

Margspakr slowly lowered his head, getting very close to Rarity, who stared up to the enormous head in more fear than respect. She was shaking out of control, but she really couldn’t tell if this was due to the dragon or her disease. Large quantities of air rushed past the sick white mare and into his nostrils. For a few moments, Margspakr’s gaze wandered up to the ceiling in thought, but then he lowered his head again and shook it slowly.

“It is a very foul magic that has befallen your friend. I fear I am not as much of use to you as you may have wished for. A cure to such a horrible curse is not known to me,” he explained.

“But there has to be something you can tell us! Please, this is very urgent!” Twilight pleaded.

Margspakr got upright again and closed his eyes. It seemed like he really tried to roam through his memories and knowledge to give any sort of advice. Eventually, he let out a sigh.

“I am ancient, that is true. But as much as I would like to be, I am not all-knowing. Truthfully, I hardly know anything about curses in the first place,” he spoke while slowly shaking his head, but then started to stare at Twilight for a moment before continuing. “But it would be a shame if you came all this way for nothing. While I can’t provide a cure or support for your rebellion, I still can share knowledge of ages long passed. Maybe some of it may turn out to be useful to you.”

Twilight was disappointed. But by now, she didn’t really expect a different outcome. She just thought to herself that she was lucky to have this unique opportunity of gaining rare knowledge.

“That is very nice of you, darling,” Rarity thanked weakly.

The old dragon gave her a benevolent smile, then again seemed to be roaming through his memory.

“Hmm… Time seems to be of great importance to you. You all seem very stressed and under pressure. You will have to leave the islands and return home soon, I take?” he wondered.

“Yes. We need to prepare for an assault on our headquarter,” Celestia explained.

“I see. Hmm. I don’t know how much use this will be, but something urges me to tell you a little secret about time and how it affects our world,” the dragon stated.

“Any knowledge could be helpful. We gladly accept anything you can share,” Twilight spoke.

“Well then,” Margspakr started, but again dove back into thought, apparently having issues figuring out how to start. “Immortality. It is something all mortal creatures want to achieve. Even us dragons, who exist for thousands and thousands of years, wish for nothing more than to live for as long as possibly imaginable. I know alicorns can basically live forever. You have no natural death and the only way you can perish is by violence, be it an accident or on purpose. But eternity is an illusion. Nothing lasts forever. Because even though millions of years may pass, there will always be a point where what had always been a stable constant suddenly changes. That which you call ‘time’ is nothing but a scale created by us mortal beings to measure the span between such changes. Time never was a creation of our world. In truth, it does not exist. It is meaningless. There is no forward or backward. There is always only the now. What we call ‘the past’ are the impressions left to us by memories. What we call ‘the future’ is nothing but speculation of what changes may be ahead of us.”

“But how do you explain time traveling spells then?” the purple mare wanted to know.

“Ah. A student of the teachings of Starswirl, I see,” the dragon spoke with a smile. “I met him once, you know. He may have created this ‘time traveling spell’, but he only named it that way to make it simpler for others to understand. Starswirl as well was aware of the fact that time does not exist. In fact, I learned what I am teaching you right now from him! With this spell, he tried to put this knowledge to a test. Of course, it would seem like you are traveling through time if you are capable of meeting yourself from an age passed. But what this spell truly does is nothing more than creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. If time travel would be possible, events of the past could be changed for a different outcome in present and future. It would be a power that could be used for both good or bad. But if it was used either way, why did your kingdom fall and why hasn’t your rebellion been eradicated before it ever started? Also, if it was so easy to travel through time as to simply cast a spell, many would be using this power. This world would be constantly changing. Every day… no. Even every hour would make the world look entirely different. With each moment passing, we would see it in ashes or blooming. But you can’t manipulate what doesn’t exist. Our world is a constant that only major forces can change over a long period.”

“That is an interesting way to look at it. Let me try to get this… I once was visited by my future self who tried to warn me from a disaster in the future. Afterwards, I spent days trying to prevent said disaster and by doing so, I started looking more and more like my future self. In the end, the disaster never happened and I tried to use the time travel spell to tell my past self to stop chasing after the disaster. Hm, true. It was a self-fulfilling prophecy. Nothing changed in the end. But it is hard for me to understand how this could have started. When my future self talked to me, I didn’t even know a time travel spell existed. I only gained the knowledge to cast it after the event transpired. How could I talk to myself twice then? And how were our words exactly the same both times?” Twilight wondered.

“Starswirl put his everything into the spell. He tried his very best to disprove his own theory. In fact, he tried it so hard that he managed to create a highly complex illusion that keeps on roaming throughout this world even today. A paradox that creates an illusion to reveal the possibility of a time traveling spell to an individual with exceptional magical capabilities and a strong hunger for knowledge. It reads the mind of the individual, forms an illusion that seems plausible to them and encourages them to pursue a goal that eventually leads them to casting the spell themselves. With their strong believe of what they were seeing after casting this spell was real, they failed to recognize this illusion and that the spell makes them speak out the words they had in their mind from the first encounter with the paradox. Starswirl as well fell for this. You see, the first time he cast that spell, nothing happened. Only the following attempts were successful. But he was smart enough to check the results and repeat the experiment several times over. This way, he could figure out that it was his own mind deceiving him by making him cast the spell that set everything in motion in the first place. This paradox Starswirl created could be seen as a form of being. After being cast, it wanders off to look for a creature willing to cast the spell again. After performing the illusion, it vanishes, only to be recreated by the spell being cast again. Frankly, it is humorous once you think about it. Without it being his intention, he created the longest lasting prank in the history of this world,” the old dragon spoke, snickering a bit near the end.

“Heh. You are right. This is kind of funny. I envy you, Margspakr. You had the chance to meet Starswirl in person. Oh the things I could learn from him if he were still alive…” Twilight commented.

“Don’t forget my words, young mare. Time does not exist. It is meaningless. His bones still remain to this day, lying in his grave in Arcania. You can still meet him in person if you wish to,” Margspakr replied.

“It just wouldn’t be the same. But maybe one day, I will visit his resting place. Anyway, thank you for sharing this,” the purple mare spoke.

“There is much more I can share with you, if you can spare the time,” the dragon offered.

“Of course! What else can you tell me?” Twilight wondered.

---

It was evening. The sun slowly started to set after the fourth day the group spent with Margspakr. He really seemed to love talking to them and it felt like he never wanted them to leave. But sadly, their time was limited. Twilight was mostly interested in what the old dragon could tell about his own kind, important events in history, strategies and spells. Now, it was time for them to leave. Even though they gained nothing of what they originally desired, this journey at least didn’t turn out to be a waste. The dragon managed to inspire Twilight. She already started working on a battle plan for the Red Day, but so far just got the rough concept done. Since this was extremely critical information, she told the others that she would not reveal the plan until just hours before the attack. By then, she could only hope to have it fully fleshed out.

The heads of the ponies were fully with thoughts. They gained a glimpse of what it was like to be a creature even far older than Celestia. All of them proceeded the impressions in their own, unique way. Only one couldn’t focus.

As they were climbing down the hill from Margspakr’s cave towards the shore, Rarity felt incredibly exhausted. She could hardly breathe, her whole body was on fire and she could hear her own heartbeat pumping in her ears. Her eyes were sore and her vision blurry. Each step was a great struggle. She was shaking of weakness. Suddenly, her hoof gave in and she fell to the ground.

The white mare gagged as she landed on her chest. Her lungs and ribcage hurt enormously and the landing made her so sick, she couldn’t keep the content of her stomach to herself. Immediately, her friends came over to help her back up. Rarity tried to be strong. She insisted on trying to keep walking on her own. But just a few steps later, she fell again. This time on her side, causing her to cough badly and letting the world spin out of control. She felt miserable, but too weak to really care about it.

Twilight and the others once again came to Rarity, trying to help her back up. She could no longer stand. Her legs just wouldn’t support her anymore.

“Get the cart,” the purple mare ordered to a minotaur.

While this one left, the rest of the group remained in place. The other minotaurs and the griffons took position and secured the area from all directions. Fortunately, the dragons seemed to get tired now. None were interested in the group and some easy prey.

Fluttershy remained next to Rarity, watching her closely. The white mare was shivering, but also sweating at the same time. Every few moments, she started coughing heavily, some blood coming out of her mouth each time. The white mare and the yellow mare stared at each other. It seemed like they were speaking to one another without any words. Suddenly, Fluttershy gave her a nod, causing Rarity to take a deep breath to recollect herself.

“Twilight… Forget about the cart. It is time…” she spoke with strange confidence and certainty.

“No. Don’t talk like that, Rarity. We got you this far. It’s not over yet,” the purple mare replied.

“Twilight… I’m sorry to say, but she’s right. She is dying,” Fluttershy explained.

Instantly, the entire group became alert. Her closest friends clustered up around the white mare, looking at her with wide open eyes of shock. Then their focus jumped to Twilight.

The purple mare sighed. She knew they wanted confirmation. So far, Twilight never once summoned her book of death, mostly to prevent herself from even accidentally seeing Rarity’s date of death. But it seemed like she now had no choice anymore. As much as she tried to deny it and didn’t want this knowledge, she had to see it now.

Twilight’s horn lit up and moments later, the large black book appeared in front of her. The book seemed to immediately know what she wanted and opened up by itself, flipping several of its pages before it stopped. The purple mare read through the page. Most names were unfamiliar to her. A few she recognized from Equestria or the rebellion. Then, she found her friend’s name.

The others were staring at the purple mare, trying to read her expression. Twilight tried her hardest to not show anything. But gradually, her expression slipped and tears started to wash down her face. In less than ten minutes, Rarity would be dead.

She didn’t need to say a word. The others understood by Twilight’s reaction alone, falling into grief themselves. Her friends now started hugging the sick mare. She, however, just smiled at them, laying on her back and shaking in fever and agony.

Twilight stared at the floor as she made the book disappear again, tears dropping to the rocky ground. A mix of emotions filled her. A strong sadness, a furious anger and an overbearing shame. Shame that she had been acting so immature and blue-eyed about this. Shame that she broke yet another very important promise. Crying herself into hiccups, she walked over to Rarity and held her front hoof.

“I’m so sorry, Rarity… I’m so sorry… I failed. I couldn’t save you in time…” she spoke, her voice reaching a high, sorrowful pitch.

“Darling…” the white mare started, then had to cough several times before she could continue. “You don’t have to be sorry for anything. You went way out of your way to try and stop the unstoppable. It has long been clear to me that this day would come. You have nothing to regret… And neither do I.”

As soon as she was done speaking, Celestia turned around. She was battling against her own tears and didn’t want anypony to see her cry. Once again, she could only blame herself for yet another life being lost due to her terrible past decisions.

“Just… Please keep my request in mind. Don’t reap me. Please don’t,” Rarity spoke, her voice losing strength now.

“Don’t worry. We won’t,” Derpy assured.

Luna noticed her sister crying and turned around to her. With a light touch to her shoulder, she managed to get Celestia’s attention. The royal siblings looked at each other for a moment with very sad expressions. Luna, too, had tears in her eyes. Then they embraced each other and started to cry silently.

Rarity, though, was being very brave about this situation. She just kept smiling as these seemingly endless minutes passed. But suddenly, she lost her composure. The facade fell and she started crying herself now.

“I’m so scared…” she whispered.

“We are all here for you. We are all here…” Twilight reassured.

Shining Armor and Cadence never were as close to Rarity as the others were. They were staying a few steps back, leaving the space to her closest friends. Just like everypony else, the couple was grieving. Holding each other’s front hoof, they kept on focusing Rarity, showing their support.

Gradually, the white mare calmed down again. The others couldn’t even imagine what she must be going through right now. She quickly seemed to lose her grip on the world, getting weaker and weaker.

“It is… cold… So cold…” Rarity mumbled.

The shaking reduced more and more. Her head stopped moving around and her eyes stared straight up into the sky. Her breathing became slower and slower. Her eye rolled up and suddenly, her front leg fell to the ground. Rarity gave her final breath.

Twilight bust out into heavy sobbing. Even Fluttershy began to cry a few black tears. Derpy, Cadence and Shining Armor just closed their eyes and lowered their heads. Like this, they remained for a while. Especially Twilight needed a long time to catch herself again.

“Let’s… Let’s wait for her to wake up again…” she suggested.

The others agreed with silent nodding. All mourned, a few got up to take a few steps. But Twilight did not move an inch from Rarity’s side. She kept on looking at the dead mare, waiting to see the first signs of her beginning unlife.

Merely sixteen minutes passed when Rarity’s open eyelids suddenly started twitching again. A few blinks followed, then an audible gasp and coughing. Her friends returned around the white mare as she slowly came back to her senses. Her eyes began to move around again, slowly focusing her individual friends. She wasn’t shaking anymore. She wasn’t feeling pain anymore and she no longer felt sick. Now that the curse accomplished its goal, it lifted itself. It was true what the reapers said. For a while, she will actually be feeling better now. But it was just a matter of time before a new and much worse suffering began.

Out of reflex, she took a few deep breaths. But they did not fill her with life anymore. Her heart was no longer beating, her body no longer working. So breathing as well was pointless now. Her head started to move and she slowly tried to push herself back up. Her friends helped her in the attempt and soon, she was back up on her legs stably.

“How do you feel?” Twilight wanted to know.

Rarity looked around. She stared at her body that still looked the same as just minutes ago, but now was just a dead mass and rather felt like a prison than the home of her soul. But she was fine with that feeling. She chose this.

“I don’t know…” she replied.

No matter where she looked, Rarity could only see teary eyes and frowning mouths. All felt sorry for her. She as well gained first doubts of her plan and wondered if this was such a smart choice after all. But she had the option to end her unlife any given time. For now, she just figured she would have to get used to this and see what comes.

The now undead Rarity took her first few steps forward. It felt so strange now. Deep inside, she knew that this body wasn’t really hers anymore. It was a dead mass that would soon begin to rot and with every motion she could feel it as such. Another breath entered and left Rarity unaltered. No oxygen was extracted, no carbon dioxide exhaled. The blood in her arteries stood idle and her muscles were no longer being nurtured. Rarity arrived at a cliff and stared off into the distance. The sun was low now, half hidden behind the ocean already. The others joined her and all watched as the light vanished.