10.1
Red.

All I see is red. Is that all that is left? In this deep darkness. Yet that light still shines in. It flowed in. A ceaseless stream inside an echoless darkness. Where no sound was left. It feels like it’s gone on forever. The last sight of that horrible moment. Surrounded in the bloody skies, where the dirt that I stood on even shed that color of pain. Only to look into those two eyes that hurt more than anything else. I still see them.

What happened to the world I once knew? It seemed so peaceful. A land that I once remembered to love. Where I could enjoy it with my most dearest friend. Looking forward to a life we can share together. One that I sought to have alongside another who has stuck by me for longer than any other.

She was loveable. She was kind and somepony I slowly began to look up to and even respect as my better. Even when she was at her weakest, I still regarded her as an amazing mare. One I’d be happy to share my entire life with. Such life and love in her eyes. Something that rose out of all the pain she told me about. Pain she assured me was gone. And yet it all became a lie. Her words still hang in my head. I can’t unhear them. And I fear what it is that it can lead to. But all that’s left is my thoughts… and this darkness split in red light. I feel nothing. Nothing touches my skin. All it is, is an ache in my heart. To know that she is somewhere out there in the deepest pain. To know that she is lying to herself. Sweet Soulblight. You are ruining yourself. And I can’t understand why it is you have decided to do all this. I can never understand the terrors and pain you must have gone through to become this.

It’s like you’re no longer the pony I once knew.

That land I knew. The pony I knew. It is all fading away. Will it ever come back?

10.2
What is this land I am in? What is this world becoming? I once felt safe and loved in the land I know. To feel nothing more. Only the memory of what I saw. Leaving an icy chill along me. What do I have to do to go back to that world I love? Where all seemed perfect. If only for a moment. So I can see what it is that I loved. To get a chance, one chance to see Blight again and let her know that everything she believes. All the fears and doubts she must have learned in her life, none of it is true. I want to go back. I want to leave this and find that world once more.

I… I don’t want to be here anymore. I don’t want to be helpless. I will not watch her destroy herself.

Soul opened her eyes.

10.3
Should that red world have left? Should things have gone back to normal? What is normal anymore?

To expect to see the world you love the moment you open your eyes. To be rid of the nightmare. Yet the nightmare follows you wherever you go. To think stuff of nightmares would be the darkness. Only to open your eyes and find that light shrouding the land and making your fears true. Nothing has changed. The pain. The fear. The sorrow and tears. They remain. One thing changed. Only one.

Soul looked out, not upon Equestria anymore.

She stood on all four. Keeping her wings tight to her. Protecting herself. Frozen, yellow eyes peering out upon a dead world.

She looked down across a desolate and unmoving landscape. Going on and on. Until the very edge of what she could see. Out into the radiant fogs blinding the world beyond it all. Shimmering red. The ground bled. An entire land of reddened rock. Far below and far into the unknown. For that was all it was. A still and empty land under the cloudless, red sky.

“What is this?” She stepped closer. Her hoof touched down… to nothing. Almost tripping forward. Catching herself just in time before… she would have fallen down the thing that made her scream. When she found herself standing so tall over that land below. Down there, where the spires of rocks and darkened, red pillars coiled and twisted around the great monument she stood atop. High up here. On the peak of a mountain.

Soul backed up. Her breath so frenzied. Looking back out at it all. Where nothing moved. It was all so flat and lifeless. A world that looked like it had ended. Cracks spiderwebbed all across it all. Not even the wind could exist out there. What is going on? What is this place? It took Soul a moment to notice… I can’t feel anything. Her fur didn’t move. Not a hair on her mane moved. Nothing touched against her skin. No wind. …It’s not hot. Or cold. Not feeling chill or heat against her. Nothing. The air felt heavy. Stagnant. Stale. It hurt to breathe. This sense of utter stillness and calm in the air. How can this be possible? Even all the way up here on a mountain, nothing.

And how did I get here anyway?!

“Where am I? Blight!” Soul looked up to the sky. Into the red void high above. An empty plane. As dreary as the land below. Everything is so quiet. So still. So empty. It made Soul lower her head. Retreat from it a little. This uncomfortable place. Where have I been sent to? First thing, I was looking at what had happened to Blight. And now this. What did she do? How can I…

Soul glanced behind her. Her heart skipped a beat.

“Find… her?”

10.4
There was something. Something that rose tall in the distance. Reaching for the sky just like this mountain that she stood on. Like so many other things reached up for. As she turned around. Staring out upon this. The countless mountains that dotted the horizon.

Wherever she looked. They were everywhere. Such a vast wall of them so far in the distance. Where the clouds found a home around their spires. Reaching far and wide over and sea of mountains that went left and right. Mountains to both her sides. As Soul stepped out closer to the ledge. Looking upon a sight. A sight that made her shiver. Mountains that circled around the distances. So many that rose around the one she stood on. Reaching towards the ones in the distance until they connected. A ring.

A ring of mountains. Around an empty, rocky land below.

Impossible.

There is no way I can be seeing this again. I know where this is. I know this place! It made her wings twitch. Like they were ready to try and take flight once more like they did so many countless times over these mountains. The haunting and chilling world that these wings knew so well. As much as she did. But…

Not one snowflake dropped.

“How can I be here?” This is the world I was banished to. But… nothing but red everywhere. From something so terrible. Above the land she looked out to, she craned her neck. Finding the red orb high in the sky. Blistering fire seeping across its face. Bright red to shine out among the red world it graced. The Sun itself. Such a rare thing to see in this world. Not a single cloud up there. No wind or nothing. I… I can’t even hear the thunder. No.

Something has happened to this place. It has changed just like Equestria did. Soulblight, what have you done?

I never wanted to return to this place. I never wanted to see it again. Leave the past behind. Get rid of it. Look forward to only a new life for ourselves in Equestria. How long have I been here? Why am I here?! I don’t know what kind of terrible things run through your mind; I have no idea why it is you have done all this. Send me away to this place to do whatever it is you think is right. But it is not what I want for us. I do not want you to be that way. I do not want you to be hurt.

Soul unfolded her wings.

And I will not sit back anymore!

10.5
Something hit the dirt behind her. Almost startling her. Catching the wisps of black that fluttered past her and faded into nothing. It made the fur on the back of her neck stand up. Her wings twitched. Not even able to make one flap of her wings before she had to turn around. Finding something she could not believe. A pony. Another one.

And another.

Soul stared down upon the ponies that lay across the ground before her. No way. Ponies that she knew.

None other than Rarity fell flat on her face, surrounded by what was left of the mist that floated away. Collapsing to the ground. Much like the others. “Oh… dear…” Rarity muttered. Glancing over to the ponies around her. Ones that Soul slowly looked across. It’s no way that they’re here! Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie? The four ponies that moved. Scrambling to get up off the ground onto wobbling legs. They all looked so weak. But they all looked okay and as real as could be. Even seeing their own breaths sending dust floating up from the dirt. They really are here? How did they all get here? And how…

Soul almost gasped. Spotting the other ponies. Laying back there. But only one moved. The one who moved made Soul’s eyes widen. Not able to believe she was here. Here in this empty and dead void, the brightest of colors from her rainbow mane, as she rolled up onto her stomach. Rubbing her head. Looking so confused. As if she had not even noticed Soul right across from her. Rainbow Dash…

And the princesses.

Celestia and Luna laid as quiet as fillies. Their eyes closed. Breathing gently. With their beautiful wings left to lay at their sides. Celestia’s wing almost covering up the final pony. The last one to recognize. Twilight. As silent and still as the other princesses. Where Rainbow Dash stood over all three, staring down upon them. Her ears fell when the Pegasus looked up to the bleak sky. A sky that should not exist in this world. For her to finally set eyes upon the land that Soul knew so well. They all are here in the world I was banished to. We are all together.

How?

Are they really here? Is this them? Maybe that was what made Soul bring her hoof back. Not daring to take a step forward. Only to watch all the ponies nearly crawl back onto their hooves. So exhausted. All of them shaking their heads. Rarity fell over once more. None of them seemed to notice. More gripped by what was surrounding all of them. No longer in Ponyville or Equestria. The terror they must be feeling to see this place. I know that feeling well. All except for one. When Rainbow Dash locked eyes with her.

A long pause across the empty air between them. Where no wind dared to blow.

10.6
She looks just as surprised as I am. As scared? Dash didn’t do a thing. The total shock of us meeting in this place. And I doubt she knows where we are. To be honest, I don’t know where we are. This world. It’s unreal. As unreal as all of them being here too. But here we are, together. Dash slowly began to realize that. She took a step. “Soul?”

Every step she took, like it showed more and more the truth behind it all. I’m not alone out here. All my friends are here. The ponies who accepted me. And the one pony who I could never leave behind. She came for me. Is this a dream? I don’t know. The joy that she could feel at knowing that Rainbow Dash was here, in front of her. The last time I saw her, she was bleeding and hurt. Couldn’t say a word before she disappeared. I get to see her again, and the joy that lit up across Dash’s face made it so worth it. To where Soul’s heart felt a little lighter. The fear that fell away from her. For her to be able to walk up.

It’s too hard to smile. No. I can’t smile. Like her face refused to. Not when she began to cry. Soul ran forth. Right for the pony that galloped for her. Dashie! Right when I felt so alone and scared, you came to me. Rushed for her. Soul could not even make a move before she was pushed to the ground, held in both of Dash’s forelegs. Carrying her to fall to the dirt with her where Dash lay on her. No longer alone. She is here. In this terrible world I never wanted to see again. I am happy she is here with me this time. Hugging Soul so tight. Burying her head deep into Soul’s chest where she felt the warm tears stream over her fur. “Soul. It is you!” Dash cried. “I was so afraid.” You were afraid? You have no idea how afraid I was. None of this needed to happen. But that’s okay. We are here for each other. Soul put her own hooves around Dash. Crying up to the red sky above her. Never alone again. I’ll not leave you again. You must have been so worried. I know I was.

“Rainbow, you have no idea how happy I am to see you” Soul whispered. Looking away from the sky and down at the pony who held her tight. Soul clutched her. Kneeling her head down to finally give a kiss to the mare’s soft mane. It felt like we’ve been apart for a long time. Not knowing what was happening. If you were okay. Waking up to this world. “I was afraid I might not see you again” Soul admitted. Especially after the last time I was here. “Thank you for coming for me.”

Dash giggled down there. Pulling a hoof up to wipe her face. Looking up to Soul with a smile. “I was scared of that too. I didn’t know if I’d get to see you again. Not after all that. Sweet Celestia…” Dash pushed her nose deep into Soul’s fur. “I’m so glad to see you. You’re okay. I had no idea what happened to you or where you went.” What even did happen to me? What even happened to the whole world?

Soul glanced and noticed the other four standing back, watching them. So confused. Though… they did look afraid. That’s right. We’re not alone. All of you are here. And that’s what is freaking me out. “How did all of you get here? I didn’t think this was a place you guys could find me at” Soul asked. Dash didn’t answer. She actually stared up at Soul. So puzzled. Did she even have anything to say? What’s wrong? “W-we don’t know how we got here” none other than Fluttershy said. “Where even is here?”

They don’t know? That was what made Soul sit up. Carrying Dash up in her legs, holding her against her chest. Something bad must have happened. I rarely see Dash this worried. She won’t even let me go. And her legs… she’s shaking. “What happened?”

“Soulblight attacked us” Applejack said.

10.7
What!? Soul looked to the Earth pony. That pony… had such a cold face. Even when she closed her eyes and lowered her head. Blight attacked you? But how can that be? No. “No, …she wouldn’t do that. What do you mean?” Soul looked to all of them. As those terrible words repeated in her head. Blight would never do that. Her and I are supposed to have a life together with all these ponies… except…

I don’t think that’s what she wants anymore. She doesn’t want to be a part of my world anymore.

The final sight of that magenta pony that stood in front of her. Her eyes burning brighter than any flame. Eating away what was left of her blackened eyes. Are these the same tears I had when she said that to me? Soul wiped a hoof over the tear that fell along her cheek. That I know what she really is? And now… she can’t be a part of my world?

Blight, what is it you are thinking? What can make you do this? It can’t be true. But not even Rainbow Dash said a word. None of them did. Their silence said it all. So she really is behind all of this.

Blight, please don’t do this.

No! “You’re lying” Soul accused them all. None of them even shuddered at that. “Blight is my best friend. She protected me and wanted to have a life with us. The only thing she wanted was to be with ponies who loved her. I know her. She would never…” Soul noticed Dash down below, the mare’s solemn eyes drifted away. A tiny tear shimmering in them. Not able to look Soul in the eyes anymore. So… is that why the princesses are all laying over there? Did Blight do that? “She couldn’t. I trust her.” Blight, I wanted us all to be friends. It’s what I wanted since we agreed to come back home. These are all ponies who would want to be your friends. All we had to do was prove my innocence. Then we can all live our lives together. Achieve our dreams. It’s what I always wanted. I never wanted to see you sad again. But you were. Even when we came so close to the dream I had, …you are still sad.

Blight, you think you have no place in my life anymore. You did what I feared you would do. Even when I believed you were happy. I can’t handle this! Blight would not do this. She would not cause all this. I… I…

Soul let her hooves go. Falling off from Rainbow Dash. As weak as she was.

What have I missed all this time? What do I need to do to free her from the pain of the past? I want to give her all, is it even enough? She means the world to me. I thought I knew her. Turns out I don’t know her well enough. Not enough to stop this from happening. So much that I now see how stupid I really am. Soulblight is unlike any pony I’ve ever met. She is unique. Facing feelings I can’t even imagine. All from a past that I can’t understand. She is so quiet. So reserved. Never tells me anything about what she wants. I assumed I knew what she wanted. I didn’t realize all her fears are still there. She is still that sad pony that I hurt back in the snow. Nothing has changed. Whatever happened to you, can I even help you?

Blight, what is it you want?

10.8
“Blight did not want to hurt any of you. How can she have attacked you?” Soul whispered.

“Well she did!” A voice struck her so hard. Almost made her reel back. So malicious. Somepony to be so angry, yet it was none of them. It took her a moment to realize it when it was Twilight who stumbled up onto her hooves. Panting so hard, spit dripping down from her open mouth as she stared to the dirt. She couldn’t even see the princess’ eyes under her mane. She still could sense it. The anger that almost glowed from the alicorn. Completely exhausted. Not able to stop her from raving. “I don’t know… what you were thinking, Soul. Bringing that monster to Equestria. Not telling us just how dangerous she is. I… I’ve never seen anything like it. Such a horrible beast… and you brought her here!” Twilight flipped her mane up, angrily glaring to Soul. Her hoof pointed to her. Those words that stabbed Soul through the heart. To call Blight a monster. A beast.

“How can…”

Soul was cut right off. “How can you even think you can let something like that live in Equestria!?” Twilight shouted. Leaving all the others in silence. As shocked as Soul was. “None of you even get it, do you?” Twilight looked across them all. Then back to Soul. Shaking her head. “She attacked us, tried to kill us… with a spell I’ve never seen before. We couldn’t even stop it. The only reason we are still alive is because Soulblight stopped it herself at the last minute!” “She is not happy!” Soul yelled. “She would not kill you. She is only confused and scared because she thinks she has no place in my life anymore!”

“Scared?!”

Twilight stepped forward. The princess didn’t even notice the other princesses leaning up, trying to get up as well. No. She stormed at Soul. I can’t understand why Twilight is like this. She came off as so nice before. What is wrong with her? Even planting her muzzle right into Soul’s face. I should be mad. Soul found it hard to try and be strong. Not against this ferocious alicorn who had come off as so sweet before. “I don’t think she is the scared pony you think she is. You don’t know what kind of power she used on us. But I felt it! I know what it could have done. Trust me!” Soul backed off. The princess looking back at the others.

“That spell would have destroyed all of Equestria!”

10.9
“Nopony should ever put that much magic into a spell. But she did it anyway and attacked us with it. I didn’t know what to do. There would have been no point in trying to escape. We all would have died. I tried my best to stop it, I was just too weak. Even if she stopped it herself, …she tried to destroy the entire land. Our home!” Twilight stabbed her hoof right into Soul’s chest. “You tell me she is confused and scared. She didn’t care for our home and the thousands of lives she would have wiped out the moment she sent that spell at us.”

None of them said a word. None of them even tried to fight against what was being said. Even Applejack nodded. Sweat beading down her face. Just like all the others. All of them stunned to learn what had almost happened. Soul saw that Celestia sat back there, her entire body shook. Destroyed all of Equestria? Blight wouldn’t want that. Come on, why are none of you saying anything? Why are… are all of you treating Blight like this? She’s my best friend. She… “She only wanted a home that she would be safe in. She wants to be with me. She is terrified of being apart and will do anything to stay with me. Back when we were banished together, she almost broke down because she thought I was going to leave her. She has never had a friend and has been alone for so long. You can’t treat her like she is some monster.” Soul stepped right into Twilight. Not even caring the alicorn’s horn pointed right into Soul’s own mane. Glaring at one another. Baring their teeth.

“And right now, she thinks that she has no place with us! She is still hurt after what happened to her long ago and the last thing she needs is to be treated like dirt! I asked her not to hurt anypony and she did just that. You should be grateful she didn’t want to go through with it. Not after all she’s gone through. I’d give her a second chance. Because I did give her one and she became such a beloved friend.”

“You knew she was this dangerous? Yet you still brought her!?” Twilight yelled. “Maybe I should have talked to the princesses earlier about you. To never give Soulblight the chance to have done all this. She is too powerful for us to stop. The entire land is in danger from her. If only we had kept you away, she would be gone as well.”

Twilight…? Soul held her breath. The alicorn stepped away. Leaving her purple tail as the last thing Soul saw of her. And I thought we were friends. So you want me to be banished? Now you want me gone? And you still are treating Blight this way. That made Soul stomp a hind leg into the dirt. Almost wanting to tackle the pony. She really wanted to. I don’t care if Blight almost killed you all… she still stopped herself. She can still be shown that she is not as bad off as she thinks. We can still be happy. But you want to write her off now? I won’t let that happen. “You heartless bitch” Soul whispered. Making Twilight stop. Stamping her hooves down.

“Hey now, Twilight…” Dash spoke up. “I think we may be jumping too fast into this.”

“Oh, no” Twilight said. Her voice so high. Almost laughing. Turning around, as if ready to charge at Soul. If she wants to fight me, I’ll fight. I’m not giving up on my best friend! “I want to hear what Soul has to say.” “I said you’re a bitch! You call yourself a princess of friendship, and you’re gonna give up on a pony who really needs help from us?”

“I really should banish you” Twilight growled. Walking back towards Soul once more. “Maybe I will and then my friends and the ponies I love can be safe again. I am The Princess of Friendship! But I still need to do whatever it takes to keep my friends safe.”

“The same for me” Soul said.

10.10
“Shut up!” Soul silenced herself. That voice even made Twilight stop. Both of them frozen from that echoing and booming command. What…? Soul couldn’t react before Luna stepped in between them both. Swiping her wing against Soul. It made her step back. Pushing Twilight away as well.

“Stop acting like fillies! Yes, the situation is dangerous but we should not start taking it out on each other! Soul has done nothing wrong. Turns out she never even was the one who killed those ponies long ago. So I’ll be damned if she is banished again, …Twilight.” Luna leaned in on the princess. Making Twilight look away. What? How does she know that… whatever, I don’t care about that right now. “I’m not going to give up on Blight” Soul said.

“You won’t be making any decisions right now” Luna said to her now. “We don’t even know what we are dealing with or what she is doing. She must have sent us here for a reason. We need to stop fighting and start finding a way out of here immediately.” One final flush of her wings and Luna walked away from them both. You are all acting like Blight is a threat. She isn’t! She may have been hiding a lot from me but I can still tell she is not lost. I almost gave up on her back in the snow. I didn’t in the end and it paid off. Why can’t we do it now? Why can’t all of you give her a second chance? “I want to find Blight” Luna said. “I don’t think she is up to any good.” That was enough to make Soul bite her lip. Really wanting to lash out at the princess. You come to defend me from Twilight and now you’re gonna keep insulting my best friend. I don’t care what she did to you all, she is not the beast you all think she is.

“Fine… you’re right” Twilight said. “I trust Soul. I still think we need to find a way to deal with Soulblight.”

“Enough!” Soul yelled out. I don’t care what you all say. She flared her nostrils. Wings ready to take flight. Held out so far at her sides. “You can be nice to me all you want, but I won’t listen to you all attack my best friend.” Maybe this will make you all listen. “None of you can even hope to stop her. You have no chance. I know how she can get when she feels threatened and scared. Pushing her into a corner, you’re going to all die if you don’t listen to me!” And that is the horrible truth. Blight is no different than she was before. Nothing has changed. She is still that ravenous pony who stood between me and the wolves. She will do anything to keep me with her. She does want to be with me… I just wish I knew why she thinks she can’t be with me. “She wants friends. Don’t push her away! Please, she is not the bad pony you think she is.”

“Well then…” Twilight whispered to her. Not at all pleased. “Maybe we can consider it if you do a better job at keeping that mangy animal on a shorter leash because I don’t want to risk all of Equestria again!”

10.11
“Will you all shut up!” Soul’s heart leapt as the darkness fell before her. A flurry of black, so quick and silent, she didn’t even notice her own feathers twitch in response. Not even sure what it was at first. A wall of darkness that stood between her and the others. Dirt fluttered around it. Swiped away by the stomp of a hoof and sent to fly with a gust let out from black feathers. Soul blinked. I can’t believe it. Soulblight?

The black pony. Truly was! Pulling her huge, black wings back in where Soul could see her yellow eyes gleaming out from among the darkness shining along her fur. “Seriously, you all are supposed to be friends and you can’t even be with each other for five seconds without arguing” Soulblight looked over her shoulder at Soul. She doesn’t look happy. She actually looked… worried. Soulblight letting out a breath. Looking right into her eyes. Those dragon eyes shining of yellow. Like those horrible eyes from before faded away in Soul’s head. To see her again. This is Blight. This is the pony I remember. As black as the void, eyes so warm, and a voice that almost soothed her just by being able to hear her once again. Those two beautiful feathered wings. I’m so happy to see them. I don’t know what that other pony was, but I’m so glad to see my pony. Even if Blight sounded angry, she didn’t scare Soul away. Leaving all the others silent. Staring upon this pony.

Blight treaded on hooves of black mist. Warping around the very dirt she stepped on. Coming a little closer to Soul. Like she wanted to say something. Her mouth moved. She only turned away. What is it? Blight’s eyes fell away. Instead speaking down to the soil. “But at least I was able to find you all. I can count myself lucky. Still, this is no time for us to be fighting.” Blight faced the rest of them. Making some of them jump upon seeing her face. I don’t understand what is going on. Blight, I have so many questions. “Who are you supposed to be?” Applejack asked. Not one of the questions Soul had in mind, yet her heart felt so uneasy. Uneasy because of the stinging thing that was said.

“You’re Soulblight!” Celestia spoke out. Stamping down on all four hooves. Just like her sister. Side by side, as Soul witnessed both sisters stand before Blight. Like they may pounce on her. They do know who she is. Oh no, and Blight isn’t saying a word. “What is it you want? Trying to finish the job?” Luna said. Leave her alone. This is Blight. The same Blight I’ve always known. You all shouldn’t be afraid of her. Can’t you see she is her old self? Soul took steps forward. I won’t let them hurt her. I don’t care. But Blight’s hoof came up. Facing back at Soul. It was the thing that stopped her. Why does she want me to stay back? “Blight, I can handle this” Soul insisted. “They don’t understand.”

“And neither do you” Blight said. Why would you say that!?

“She’s right, Soul. You don’t understand” Twilight jumped in at the side. Like a shield in front of the rest of the ponies. “You are Soulblight! I’m going to stop you right here. I’ll protect my friends!” The alicorn’s horn came down. The wind finally howled.

10.12
What? Was something supposed to happen? All was silent. Nothing made a move. As if all the others were frozen. With just Blight left there… staring at the horn that pointed towards her. She didn’t flinch. Soul put her hoof back down. What happened? She was going to attack her. Soul didn’t even have time to leap in. To push Twilight away. To stop whatever spell she was going to do. Yet no spell came, and Twilight stood there with her horn calm. Even when she gasped. Grunting and straining herself. As if she wanted something to happen. Something isn’t right. Did she… did she run out of magic or something?

Blight sighed. “Save your energy. In this place… you have no magic.”

“What!?” Twilight reeled her head back. Looking up to her horn. That quiet horn. “Blight, what did you do? What is this place?” Soul asked. None of this makes sense. “I want you to explain yourself, please.” This once, tell me what you are doing. I am tired of not knowing what is going through your head. Time to tell me.

“I knew you all would be mad at me. So I did what I did the last time I brought a pony into this place, I removed your powers. Your magic and your flying. I had to if I was going to do what needed to be done. No need to worry, I’ll give it all back when we’re done” Blight smiled at Soul.

Smiling like what she just said was normal. No way. Soul flapped her wings. Nothing happened. Not a single warp of air. As if nothing was even there. She saw Dash do the same. She got rid of our ability to fly? “How did you do that? Why?” Soul demanded. “When I have you ponies here, I can do whatever I please. Just listen to me, all of you” Blight said. So this is how you convinced Dash the other night. This place? Soul looked around. It can’t be. Is this where she showed Dash what happened?

“I only want to prove to you all what happened twelve years ago” Blight found herself saying to all the ponies staring at her. Twilight did not stop glaring. You could feel the anger in the air. Of course. The reason why we did all this. So she still wants to carry it out. I wish I knew what happened while I was gone. They all made you out like you did terrible things, and you are still here wanting to do this. You still want to show them all the truth… so we can have a life together. That made Soul smile. “She only wanted to protect me back then. We did not hurt anypony. Just please, listen to Blight… you’ll see she is a wonderful friend” Soul begged of them. I failed to convince them of what truly happened. I don’t care if they know I didn’t do it. I want them to see just how dear and loyal a friend Blight is. Maybe they will see she is good.

Blight giggled.

“Take it as my farewell to all of you.”

10.13
Why can’t I say anything?

“At least, I know Soul is safe to have her world back” Blight said. As if she didn’t just say what she did before. Like it was all okay. “I still just want to show you all one last thing before I go. If you’d be so kind. I only want to show you all what happened before… because I only would like to leave knowing that… none of you will hate me. It’s…” Blight sniffed. “A small comfort, all I can ask for.”

“Do you mean it? You are saying goodbye?” Twilight asked.

“You’ll leave Equestria in peace?” Celestia chimed in.

“I will. I know I couldn’t keep my promises before, but… this should at least be the one I keep. For Soul’s sake. All I want is her safety and happiness. This is the best way to be sure she’ll have that.” Soul shuddered. Because Blight didn’t even try to stop this. Didn’t try to fight. Not standing strong. The black pony wiped a hoof over her face. Her fur was damp. Soul saw the shimmering eyes the pony wore. Even if she smiled. Blight cried deeply. More tears already coming out. The others… did nothing.

“That is why I did this. I wanted to bring you all into Soul’s memories just like I did with Rainbow.” Soulblight stepped up to them all. Walking away from the only pony who was her friend. To stand in front of others who, just moments before, wanted her gone. Had nothing nice to say about her. Now, they didn’t seem to care about being so close to Blight. Is it because you all get your wish? “I wanted to…” Blight wiped her face again. “But something is wrong.”

The air became heavy.

“I… don’t know where we are. These are not Soul’s memories.”

“You brought us here, took away our magic. Now you don’t know where we are? You had better start explaining now” Twilight demanded.

“I wish I could. I really don’t know what happened. I don’t even have time to explain” Blight became more frantic. “Please just don’t be mad at me. I’ll try my best to make this all right. We just need to get moving now. Wherever this is, …it wasn’t me that did this. I can’t even imagine what can be out here. Let me take you all somewhere safe.” The pony walked past them all… her head hung low. Her ears down. Even the darkness around her slick, black coat seemed to fade. None of it was right.

10.14
Why is Blight giving up? This isn’t how I remember her. So she’s just going to walk away after saying all this terrible stuff and pretend it doesn’t hurt me. Or does she really think this is what I want? Really?! After all the years we spent together, she thinks she can just up and leave me. Give in to what these heartless princesses want. I never could have imagined it would be this way for her. I don’t want this for her. I may not know exactly what she wants, but… those are tears that I recognize. You are lying to yourself.

“Where do you think you’re going, Blight?” Soul shouted after her. Blight stopped. Standing between the others. These ponies who would rather have her leave. Get rid of my friend! I can’t believe you all. Soul ran up to them. Chasing after the black Pegasus. Rushing past each of them, Soul glanced… looking to the one pony who she felt so disappointed in. Rainbow Dash. I didn’t think you would not care. You’re better than this, Dashie. But I guess I can’t rely on you right now. I thought I could rely on all of you. I wish I knew what happened to make you all think this way about her. Whatever it is, it’s a lie. None of you know just how kind and sweet this pony is. I won’t let her do this. Soul was the only pony who came up to Blight. Standing with her. Even if the pony kept her tail to Soul. “Soul, we don’t have time to…”

“I can’t believe how much of an idiot you are” Soul shut Blight up. Where the air was once stale, it began to chill. Wind came in over Soul’s mane. Blowing along the misty mane of Blight. It made the pony stand up straight.

“You actually want to leave!?” Soul yelled. “How could you? Do you even care how I feel? After all we went through, you want to abandon me?”

“Soul, I…” Blight turned around. Met with the magenta hoof that smacked right against her face. Soul sent Blight reeling back. Spit flying out from her mouth. The black Pegasus held on to her cheek. That’s what you get. I hope it hurt. Because you’re hurting me so bad. “You’re just going to walk away and leave. Act like I don’t matter. I was hoping you were lying when you said you have no place in my life. But you really do think that. How selfish can you be? Do you even know how important you are to me? You saved my life! You were the friend I always wanted! I… I can’t go without you” Soul found herself crying. Even Blight still cried. From sadness… or the pain of being struck? I hope you feel my pain. “I’m done being the nice pony” Soul said. “You’ve lost your mind. You made it out like you were happy and wanted to be with me. That I could rely on you to be my friend forever. And now I see it was a lie. You never were happy. You hid it from me. You want to leave me.”

“I don’t want to leave you” Blight said.

“Then why are you?! Blight, you’re breaking my heart. You’re a pony I can’t go on without. I want to be there for you, as much as I want you there for me. Don’t leave me.”

Blight tapped her hoof to Soul’s. It got swept away. Didn’t stop her. “Soul, we can discuss this later. Right now…”

“Shut your stupid mouth. I’m not putting this off any longer. You will stay here and tell me what is wrong with you. I will not abandon you! Stop trying to abandon me. If this has anything to do with what the others said you did, so what? I don’t care. Don’t leave me! I need you” Soul cried. She cried. Blight bit into her lip. Shaking her head. Even through her teary eyes, she brought out that angry self of hers that Soul knew well. “You expect me to be able to live here with you, after all I’ve done? None of these ponies would want me here. You shouldn’t either. You have no idea what kind of danger you all are in with me around. You had better drop all notion that you need me.” Blight sniffed. She backed up. Crying. “Please, …if you know what’s good for you.”

Soul’s fur stood up. Her wings trembled. Chilly air flowing from her breath. She is so backwards. What we did together, does it even matter to her anymore? Is she so afraid of everything? She is willing to get rid of the friendship we had. Don’t do this to me. Don’t. She’s wrong. You’re all wrong! “You’re a liar. Nopony wants you gone. You’re such a wonderful pony. …Right everypony?” Soul looked back at them all.

Some of you got to play with Blight at the party. You all can tell it’s her, she’s just as sweet as she was before. She did everything she could to bring us all together. She is not our enemy. Blight is my best friend and she can be such a great friend to all of you. Even if she makes mistakes, so what? We all do. You can forgive her. All of you can. Soul looked across all their faces. Their silent faces. They looked to one another. But none of them set eyes on Blight. None of them helpled to lift Soul’s spirits. They all know it. They know Blight is a good pony. They know she can be a great friend. Give her a chance. Give her another chance, just like I did. It was worth it. It gave me the best friend ever. Please, …let her stay. Please…

Why are none of you saying anything?!

“Soul, …none of them want me” Blight whispered behind her. Whispering something so hurtful. I can’t believe you think that. It’s not true. “It’s best… for you to move on without me. Now that all of you know what I am. What I can do.” “I don’t want to” Soul muttered. “One of you has to agree with me. Don’t you see? Blight is the reason I was able to come back home. Don’t get rid of her. Any of you.” Soul pleaded of all of them. Any pony she turned towards, …they shied away. They all did. Luna. Celestia. The princesses bowed their heads. Even Twilight… she had pain in her face. She did not say a word. Only one pony left, and Soul came to her. Meeting eyes with none other than the one pony who got to see Blight like this. I expect the best from these ponies. They wanted to be my friends. They wanted me back home, happy. Please, just let me have this. I can’t be happy without Blight. None of it is worth it. I can’t part with her. So… please, Rainbow Dash. You should be able to see the pony that I love as well. See her for who she is. Don’t you?

She helped me feel love, now Dash… you make me cry. Cry when the rainbow-maned pony slowly closed her eyes. Gritting her teeth. She still… turned away.

So you all can only love me. You can’t love the pony that I love. Soul’s mouth went dry. She shivered. So cold. What is the use of going on if I lose one of the most important ponies to me? “You see, Soul? It’s best for me to go. We need to leave now” Blight said. Soul didn’t need to look. She heard the black Pegasus weeping. As hurt as I am.

“Well…” Soul spoke softly. “Maybe it will be best if I also leave too.” Of course, that’s the thing that makes them all stand up. Everypony shocked. They should be. I mean it. “What’s the point? Without Blight, I’d not be here. She deserves to be happy with me. Maybe she will be if I go with her.” You ponies really did help me get a taste of how wonderful it is to be home again. I got to see Dashie again. That’s something. There’s no point in going on though. Not without…

The only family I’ve ever had.

“I will leave. I will go with Blight.” I’ll leave it all behind. I’ll show Blight just how much she means to me. “You can’t!” Dash cried out. You can beg me all you want. My decision is final. I’m done. Wherever she goes, I’ll follow. I’ll never let her go.

“There’s no need for you to leave” Celestia stepped up. “Equestria is your home.”

“Well it’s Blight’s home as well. If she’s not allowed in it, then I’m not either” Soul shouted.

Soul yelped when two hooves grabbed hold of her shoulders. Twisting her around to face right into Blight’s golden eyes. The cold breath tore at her fur. Spat out without any holding back. “You will go on with your life. Forget about me. I am not a pony that can be allowed to live with you all. I never can!” Blight said the words… that made Soul cry. They made Blight cry.

The tears became ice.

10.15
A clang that rang out in her ears. It was what made Blight’s own breath turn to frost before Soul. Blight’s eyes came to life. Another clang.

Another.

What happened to the air? As Blight leaned away from Soul, not letting go of her. Both of them watching the air haze between them. Icy cold. Almost burning Soul’s nose. Burning her entire body when the wind came in. Oh my Celestia! It was so cold. Hooves freezing, standing atop dirt that chilled to frostbite. Then another clack of something striking across the sky. Their ears came up. Soul looked into Blight’s eyes. I… I’ve…

I’ve never seen her more afraid than now. Then Soul noticed it. I’m afraid too. As another clap struck her ears.

There’s something there. I can feel it. It made Blight gasp when the Pegasus looked to the sky behind Soul. Such horrible fear. I don’t know what it is yet I’m so scared. It made Blight’s legs go limp, her hooves letting go of Soul’s shoulders. For the pony to collapse onto her butt, staring at whatever it was. A tortured voice that made her ears twitch like they did to Soul’s.

“Never could I believe that I could become so weak again. To see the day I would give up so easily after all I’ve gone through.”

10.16
The Sun dimmed. Upon a world that darkened. Only a faint red left to bleed across the land. Faded to black under the shadow. Where Soul looked up, where they all looked up. Everypony around her under the shade of the darkened, red sky where the wind whispered. Carrying the icy chill of a deathly voice. Spoken from the heavens where that clap came from once more. Like a true darkness to grace them all. Pitch black across them all. The tiniest rays of red sunlight struggling to shine through the black wings that cut the sky above. Mighty wings flapping. To blot out the Sun. Where a figure came down from that very Sun.

“I must say, being able to break me into submission like this. Turning me into a spineless coward. Even after the terror I once knew and learned from. It must truly be quite a feat. You ponies really have made an impression on me.”

Two hooves clapped together once more. Red light shining over the figure. Floating down to them all. Black turned to red, bearing over them the sight of four wings beating. Wings sparkling in starlight. Glowing bright. The night sky birthed across this thing.

I recognize those wings.

“Soul…” she heard Blight whisper behind her. The most terrified voice. Soul didn’t look back. Not able to take her eyes off this thing that came down on them. It opened its eyes. Blood red eyes peering out from the darkness. Blight’s dragon eyes. The same eyes I’ve seen. The same…

Its hooves clapped. Magenta fur came together. Coming out from the shadows. Where freezing wind howled down from it. Soul backed up. Covering her face. Seeing all the others backing away. She saw Dash look to her. Just a moment. Such fear in her face. She feels it too.

“That weakness becomes my own. The shared sin of the past. Never to be repeated. And here it is… rearing its ugly head once more. When I am so close to finally knowing peace. For that is what we’ve always wanted. You ponies…”

It clapped its hooves. Grinning over them with gleaming fangs. Draped in the silver hair from a mane tipped in moonlight glow. Flowing so gently in the cold wind. Impossible. That mane. The eyes that those silver hairs covered. Prying through. Glaring upon them all. Sending that fur into a frenzy under the wind blown from those four huge wings. “And even you, Soul Serenity.”

The light shone over it. A pony Soul never wanted to see again. For no other pony could do this. Such fear, like it seeped from its body. Coursing around those wings and the horn atop its head. Where even the wind carried it. Frostbitten wind that ran from it. Those hooves were held out to Soul. Hooves from a mare unlike any other. The pony I saw before Blight sent me away. This… this is Soulblight?

The pony smiled. “Forget those mad ravings; embrace peace with me. We are both hated. We are both meant to stick together. …For that is our lifelong curse.”

Her hooves hit the ground. Joining them all. Soul looked up, looked up alongside all the others. Staring across the mountaintop. Under the gaze of the red Sun, that pony stood tall over there. The pony from before. The same frightening pony. Soulblight?

A shadow in this bloody world.

10.17
“You…?” Twilight said. She was the only pony here who made a move, to take a single step towards that pony. Not even able to do any more. Soul could see the princess shake so subtley. Pinned down by the billowing eyes of that pony. “You’re here?”

“In the flesh” the magenta pony said. “I couldn’t leave my…” she licked her lips. “Guests waiting. I’d be heartbroken if you all decided to leave before I could at least be able to have a nice chat. Is that not what you ponies spout on about? Talking things out before rash decisions are made.” Soul froze. Frozen when that pony looked to her. Glancing at her and then… the pony behind Soul. “And how very rushed of a decision for you two to argue over. Really, it should not be such a complicated decision.”

“You will stay out of this!” Came a voice, the only voice that would dare to be raised right now. When all the others were stunned in fear. It was Soulblight who stepped forth next to Soul. Her teeth glaring out from her black fur. “It is my decision alone to make.” “Indeed, it is my decision” the other pony spoke back. “And to have such an idea as abandoning my dearest Soul Serenity actually float around in my mind… oh…” the pony placed a hoof to her cheek, pouting. “How naughty of me to even think of harm towards myself. Would it not be better simply go with the better idea?”

“Soul can be mine. All mine.”

“She will never be yours!” Blight shouted. “I’ve made my decision and it is final!”

“Then you are truly lost!” Black mist erupted from that frightening pony. Fading into nothing. But the sound of eerie wind still echoed in the void of this world.

I am at a loss for words. What is happening here? Who is this pony? And… Blight, why are you talking like you know her? This… this is the same pony that you were. I know it’s the same pony. Because this is the same feeling I felt when you became this. I just don’t get it. Something about it made it even more frightening to her when the others spoke to this pony. Soul was helpless to see Celestia actually approach her. “You, …who are you, what have you done?” “Do you not recognize me?” the pony spoke in an instant. Tilting her head to Celestia. To all the other ponies. Her silver mane fell from her face to reveal both her fiery eyes. As bright as her fanged smile. “I literally brought you all to heel just moments ago. I am Soulblight.”

Blight?

“Don’t you dare listen to her!” Blight shouted at the princess. At all of them. Everypony looked between this magenta monstrosity and the black pony at Soul’s side who said “I am Soulblight.” “Why, thank you for agreeing with me” the other Blight said over there.

“We are not the same!”

10.18
“Blight, …” Soul looked over at the angry pony next to her. As if her own words were enough to calm Blight down. Such a worried pony was all that was left standing at her side. “Please, …what is going on? You’ve kept me in the dark for so long. What is it you have done?”

“Soul, whatever is said, do not believe a word she says. I promise you, those feelings will not harm you or your friends. I will see to it that you get the life you truly wanted. Not one that she wants for you.”

“Ahahahahaha! What absolute crap” the other pony laughed. She made everypony nearly whimper. Stepping back when… when she took a step forward. Even Soul felt a chill. A chill from seeing her get closer. Another step. Then everything in front of Soul turned black. A flurry of feathers, Soulblight jumped in front of her. A wall of darkness between her and that pony who approached. What is this? What are these two ponies doing? Soul looked past Blight. The others stepped away. That pony walked past them all. Giggling to herself. Her four wings outstretched. Such sharp spans that sliced the air and split it into midnight with the stars that twinkled over her wings. “Oh I intend to not speak any lies” she said. “Only the truth, one that Soul knows. She saw it in me. She saw it in… us.”

“Every… single… part of it was just my own mad ideas” Soulblight said back to her. “I never took into account the feelings of every other pony, as well as Soul’s. She loves this world and she loves these ponies. So I intend to make it that she gets what she wants.”

“The words you speak… are mere delusions. How quick you are to forget the pain we know. No amount of selfless giving or foolish denial of your own desires can change what has happened and how it makes us feel.” The other Blight shifted her fiery eyes. Looking right at Soul. “I will not lie to you, because I am the same as her. Except for one crucial part. I… do not hide who I am… hehehehe. And how much I want to keep you happy.” “How dare you” Blight said. She looked back over her shoulder. “Soul, I have not hidden my dreams for you. I want you to be happy and for your world to be safe. She wants the opposite. Not matter what, I would never let anything happen to you all. Because that is who I truly am.” “Lies…” the other magenta-furred pony said.

What kind of position am I in? Am I really here, watching two ponies who are named Soulblight try to convince me about themselves? They both want to keep me happy? This… this is never something I wanted for us. I never wanted to see Blight have to fight to try and convince me of what she wants to do. When she looked at me… she looked so desperate. That sad and broken mare that I saw in those eyes before she sent me away. Of a pony who has never truly felt happy, even when I thought she was. And this is all put on me. I remember when I had to race for my own right as a flyer back when I was a kid. Or getting into disagreements with Dash. Whatever happened to those times? To lead to a moment like this. Those times are nothing compared to now. I don’t even know what it is I should do. And I don’t even think I have a lot of time. Her fur stood up from the red lightning that suddenly shocked across the magenta pony’s wings. Her smile growing bigger.

“This world and all who are in it do not deserve your pity. They do not deserve our pity and we both know it. You brought everthing out to try and stop those ponies from taking your world away.”

“That was you!” Soulblight said.

“It was you!” The magenta one said. “Why else would you give in to the power you know you had? The power you shame yourself in having. That you try to hide. Yet it’s that same power that you once embraced to suppress all the pain. To get rid of anything that would deviously seek to harm you. The same you did to these… pathetic ponies!” The pony waved a hoof back at the others. They all gasped. “Hey, at least we are truly there for Soul” none other than Rainbow Dash spoke up.

“You do not even know!” That magenta pony stomped a hoof down. Like that was enough to send such a terrible wind over the mountain top. Dash’s mane went wild. Making them all shield their faces. “You all abandoned her, you all hated her. I am no fool. Rainbow Dash, you were the first to abandon her when she needed you. Then the princess. And even the entire Elements of Harmony when you all thought she was behind my own actions. My actions are my own, nopony else’s.”

“We did not hate her!” Twilight said.

“Then why did you seek to banish her again?” That Soulblight said. “I overheard everything. Lies from lying, filthy ponies. Which only proves why I did it all. Why…” she turned her head to Soul. “Why I am there for you, Soul. Ponies hate us. One small mistake and they are quick to harm us. Which is why we must stick together. Because it is a pain that we can not experience again. That is why she is lying to you, Soul.” The pony pointed her hoof to Soulblight. “She hides her true feelings and desires. Yet you know it to be true, just by looking into her eyes. You see the pain that lingers and it drives our want to be with you. We will do anything to keep you. Look into your heart, you know us by now. You know Soulblight. And you can trust that she wants what is best for you, and also what is best for her.”

10.19
“Blight” Soul whispered. I would much rather like to ignore everything that was told to me. Everything that I have seen. Pretend that it is all just some sort of joke. Just that we are all so fine and happy, that we are so close to having the life we wanted together with all our friends. That we are back to what I thought was the case when you and I first became friends. I can’t. Those days have all burned away. They couldn’t exist not when Soul found herself face to face with two ponies who both looked to her. Answering her saying their name with perked ears. One pony who is so familiar to me. And another who feels like she has always been here. Everything they say, they are both as real as one another. It’s so unfortunate. All of this could have been stopped so long ago. Except for one thing.

“Why did you never tell me just how hurt you truly were?”

I am done with this game Blight is playing. Right here, under this red Sun, the truth needs to be told. I have seen it too much. That little sparkle inside of Blight’s eyes. It always looks like some fading flame that begs for a warm place to finally know peace. And it’s a peace that is now revealed. Spoken by the words of that other pony who should not be the one that Soul thought she had known for so long, yet she became more of the same to the one pony she had called her friend. They both have the same pain. No matter how they chose to act out against it, the fact was that they both need something.

They need me.

The black Pegasus almost seemed to give up. Her shoulder slumped. She stared down at the dirt. Mouth open. She had nothing to say. Is it because the truth is now here, for all ponies to see? To see just what it was that Blight had done to herself. “You lied to me and only kept hurting yourself just to try and please me.” Such a foolish thing to do.

“So foolish, indeed” the magenta pony said. Laughing for a moment. She looked so proud of herself. “Yet so needed… it only inflamed the desire.” That line is what made the black Pegasus look up from the dirt. Some life brought back into her as tears welled in her eyes. Staring out into the empty sky. Like she was lost in herself. “To believe that only fostering Soul’s own love was the way of being strong. Well, …it only reminded me of the pain. Every… single… moment that I felt so forgotten and sad only brought out the pain. It is that pain that makes us strong. It… is what birthed our desire. To have a friend for ourselves, that none could dare to harm. It is that desire that I shall shepherd, when my weak self thinks she can just walk away from it.”

Soulblight cried. A tear came down upon her black fur. One that chilled the world.

Blight, …you tortured yourself for me? Is that what you thought would make things right? To forget about yourself.

“Hehehe… and she believed the right thing to do was to take everypony to Soul’s mind and clear things up before she just fades away from your lives. Oh, no… that shall not be. You all wonder where you are. I have taken you all to a place where I can be sure our truest desire can be reality. To my own memories.”

10.20
“That’s… enough” Soulblight said as she cried. Squeezing her eyes shut. Trying to get all the tears out. She even shook her head. To become so pathetic before Soul. She became that scared and helpless mare from long ago. The one who believed she was all alone back in that snowy wasteland. Under the gaze of everypony else. All of them silent. Maybe even mystified by everything. As Soul was the one who felt her heart almost break from the sight of this dear and beloved friend become nothing more than a hollow and sad filly. As all her pain seemed to weep away from her. Her voice cracked. A small squeak. “Please stop. Do not do it!” She sounded like she was begging. “Leave them alone. I only want what is best for everypony. Not just me.”

“I… I am not that kind of pony anymore. I’m… I’m… a good pony. I just want to feel loved. I’m not a monster.”

Wind whispered over them all. Everypony’s manes flowed so gently in it. Where Soul stared down at that trembling pony and then to the others. To Rainbow Dash who bowed her head. The princesses who almost retreated away from any sense of power or authority. As if they didn’t know what to do or say. For, indeed, what could be said? Soul had nothing. Nothing except for a burning longing to have that smiling mare in front of her again. All of it fading away into dust. Like the dirt that was picked up in the wind and carried off. Flurrying past the only pony who dared to smile. That creature that called herself Soulblight. Who was… Soulblight. With all the pain in her eyes and the fear in the air, she still could be the one to smile.

“Do not fear who you are. You still harbor that power and desire for happiness. All it takes is accepting that power. Rejecting yourself again will only lead to the same pain as before. We were once weak. But true ponies must be strong. Or else we stand to lose, …like we did with mom.”

Mom? Was that what was needed? The final thing to be said before Blight finally sobbed into her own hooves.

Blight, what happened to you long ago? What made you into this?

“And so the cycle reverts once more to the start” the other Soulblight said. Turning her back to Soul and Blight. Stepping away. Across from all the others, she glared upon them all. Soul could see, underneath her long, silver mane, the gleam of fangs amidst her smile. “Where ponies once tried to take from me before, so will the events repeat again. To cast off the weakness and become…” She stomped her hooves to the dirt. Face to face with all of them. Her wings raised high. A shadow over them all.

“Majesty.”

10.21
“Blight did lie to me. She lied this whole time about being alright and happy. She hid all her pain from me and came so close to destroying herself because of it. I am very upset with her for letting it all get to this point instead of coming to me when she needed help the most. The thing about it though, is she’s not the only one who lied.” Soul made both of those Soulblights turn to her. Yet there was only one that she wanted to know she was talking directly to. Because she is no majesty. “You say that you are what Blight is. But you’re wrong. You’re heartless and cruel. You make ponies do what you want just to keep yourself happy. And that is not what the Soulblight that I know does.”

The magenta pony flicked her ears. Those words were the thing that made her actually lose that smile.

“Blight protected me for twelve years. Even when I treated her badly, she was still there to keep me warm. Make sure I didn’t starve. And kept me safe against the unknown. She didn’t need to do it. She could have easily left and be done with me after how terribly I treated her. She still found a way to forgive me and made sure I had the chance to grow into the mare I am now. She has done more for me than any pony else has. She… she is like true family to me. Encouraging me all the way to be my best. Pushing me to get to the life that I want. She does more than most mothers do. And she didn’t need to do any of it. That is what makes her special. She is kind and generous, and she is not the monster you make her out to be. The only monster that exists is you.”

“Soul has always been the one pony I have cared about. Even before I wanted her to be my friend, …when I saw her as a sad and helpless filly, I didn’t want to leave her all alone. Something about her made me want to nurture her. Made me want her to grow up into a strong and independent mare who can achieve her dreams. It had nothing to do with me wanting her all for myself. I never wanted anypony else to be harmed. To me, the only one I wanted to suffer any type of hardship was myself.” Soulblight stood up on all four of her hooves. Even with tears streaming down, she found the strength to face the other pony. To be that strong mare she always was. That is just who she is.

“I am Soulblight, not you. I do not want harm for any other pony. I do not want to cause suffering and I am tired of suffering. All I want is for everypony to be happy. I will never be like you. I am not that pony at all.”

Soul took a step back. Slinking away from the black mist that coiled across the dirt. Coming over Soulblight. A flurry of magic that seeped out from her very fur. Making the wind howl as dust was kicked up. Soul watched the seas of dust and dirt flow across the landscape around them. Shrouding out the world. Getting stronger and stronger. All from a power as both Soulblights stared down one another. It was a truly electrifying feeling all along her skin. Like the lightning that crackled along the magenta pony’s body. “You are really quick to forget yourself” that pony said. “You believe yourself to be pure. As if all the pain inside of you isn’t real?”

“I do have pain, but it’s not enough to push me to do the things you do!”

“Then should I remind you of a little thought you had regarding Soul a while ago? Or perhaps Soul would be so interested in hearing it. It’s quite the tale that shows just how much you like to deny who you are” the other Soulblight laughed.

Interested in hearing? Soul turned to Blight. Now what is it this pony is going on about? Whatever it was… it left Blight with wide eyes. “You will do no such thing! That was all a mistake on my part and I have learned from it” she said. “But it’s a mistake that could have been quite messy, because even you agreed it was the best course of action. Anything to keep a hold of the only friend you could ever have. To keep away the pain so we may never know it again.”

“Blight” Soul whispered. “You can tell me. You should know by now that I am a pony you can talk to.” She should know that. Sometimes, it seems like she forgets. Often. As if it was a hard idea to do it now as Blight hesitated to say anything. At least, the Blight that Soul wanted to hear from. The other one was the pony who spoke. “Back in that snowy wasteland, Soul could never stop going on about how she was going to leave that place behind and go back to her old life. She was so persistent in getting out as soon as possible. Just wanting to forget everything. All the pain and suffering that her banishment brought out. She didn’t even seem like she wanted to be with me anymore. I was so afraid of her leaving me, so afraid that I’d have to repeat all the events of the past again… that I…”

“You will say nothing more!” Soulblight hissed. That black magic around her got even wilder. Stronger than even the howling dust storms coming over the world around them. She only made that other pony grin. “I was content with cutting Soul’s wings off just to keep her with me.”

“Damn you!” Blight faced back to Soul. “Soul, I was just upset. I didn’t know what you wanted. It doesn’t excuse my actions, but I decided against it. I am so glad I did. It was a moment of weakness and I learned from it. I would never want to harm you.”

“You really are trying so hard to deny yourself and let yourself fall right back into the pain of the past. But… maybe it is that pain that will remind you…” the magenta-furred Soulblight took to the air. All four wings beating so hard against the oncoming dust as it grew wilder one moment and then slowly began to fade beneath the reddened sky of the bloody Sun. Where that pony held her forelegs out wide at her sides. As if she presented the entire world to them all. A world that emerged from beneath that sea of dust.

“Remind you of the pony you truly are.”

The wind struck hard against them all.

10.22
Soul opened her eyes. What happened? Everything went dark for a moment, now she rubbed her eyes. It was all in a haze. Slowly piecing back together in the bloody red light upon this world. Where Soul held a hoof over her face, shielding from the blinding light of the Sun. From what was left of the dust that danced around them all. Something stood so tall before her in the foggy view beyond. Was it a mountain? There wasn’t a mountain right there before. Then another. And another. Massive, black spires that rose tall over the landscape. A landscape of black. Taken in what was the red hue of that horrible Sun. A Sun that was blotted out behind the spires. Struggling to shine through.

Was it just not knowing what they were at first? She didn’t know. But, as the fog faded and the dust settled, she started to see it. As the seconds passed, her heart began to sink and her eyes grew wider. Where a land of dirt and emptiness once stood between all the mountains. Where a dead void seemed to be all that could exist inside this mountain range where the peaks stood tall around it like lonely sentinels. Where Soul could look out and see a world that once lay covered in snow. The land she thought she knew. It all disappeared. Leaving a sight unlike any other.

There was no deserted land or snowy wasteland. There was… a city.

“Remember… who we are” that magenta-furred Soulblight whispered. Glaring down upon them all, her wings held high. As if proud to show this world behind her.

Countless buildings, taller than any others to be seen before. Rising so high into the heavens. Like they could touch it all up there. They had windows. Lines and lines of windows. Bristling black and shimmering of silver light along them all. From the closest one to the furthest, they were all beyond any other building to be seen before. Standing tall over a city that spread far and beyond, up to the end where the mountains rose tall above them in the distance. A sea of buildings. Like ants all across land. Ringed in black and red. Where Soul stood to look down upon it all, spotting what had to be trails… except they were laced in something grey… and huge. Running across the city. Everywhere. Along a city drenched in golden lights, silent structures. Things Soul couldn’t even know what they could be. I’ve never seen a place like this before. What they hell is all this? It’s like looking out on Cloudsdale again. The windswept cloud city cast in the shadows of the city’s great spires and columns that rose to the rainbows above. Can this city even be compared to that?

This one… was huge.

“Where are we!? What have you done?” Luna cried out. Drowned out in the magenta pony’s laugh.

Where are we? I want to know that too. Is there even a place like this in all of Equestria? I’ve never heard of such a city. One that was so silent, so empty. Nothing moved out there. Just a city. A dead one. Where a light would flicker out there. Nothing more. No, there was only one sound that could be heard.

I want to know what has happened. A land like this. Where did everything go? Where did this city come from? The mountain range. The crater. The empty desert. All gone. Burned away under this city. Endless questions. No answers. Soul could ask nothing. Not when she felt a pit in her stomach. Listening to none other… than a gentle whimper.

From Soulblight.

The black Pegasus sat next to her, staring out upon the same sight as all of them. A tear hit the ground. Blight? What is this place? I’m so afraid to ask her. Who could ask her when seeing a place like this? After everything that has happened. The whole world they once knew was now turned upside down. Something about it made Blight’s eyes… sparkle. Not from her tears. A glint of red burning deep inside. A truly horrible thing that even Soul could feel. A feeling of sorrow. It came over Soul. It came over them all.

Soul sat next to Blight. Atop the mountain, looking out with her upon what had been an empty world. A world that once was incredible. Filled with agony. I feel like… we’ve done this before. Long ago. Her and I. I had… this same feeling.

Blight…

“And in the end… the best thing to do… is to never give in again” the other Soulblight said. “Never be that submissive pony again. Leave behind the world that would rather see you gone. It never was hard for us to do.”

“Blight…?” Soul stared at the black pony. Please talk to me. Whatever is making you like this, it’s not real. Whatever horrible thoughts are going through your mind, they are lies. You are a better pony. There is no need to be afraid of anything. Not when I’m by your side. That was what made Soul offer a hoof to her. Leaning close. Because… there is nothing better I’d want from such a wonderful pony like you than a hug. Blight turned to her. Holding a hoof up. So many tears in her eyes. Looking like a poor filly. The same poor filly I remember from when she needed me before. Whatever happened to you, I will not abandon you. Let me hold you, and hold me. Like old times.

“Soul…?” Blight gave a hoof towards Soul. That’s it. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be sad. You were there for me a lot when I was a kid. Always wanting to help me feel better. Let me do the same for you right now. Everything will be okay. The past is the past. Things have changed. And from now on… “We are all here for you.”

“I’m sorry, Soul…”

Blight’s hoof fell away.

“I’m a horrible pony.”

10.23
Whatever was left of that strong Soulblight was now gone. Washed away in tears. Only a shadow of a mare was left. Left to cry into her own hooves in front of Soul. Not a word left. None as Soulblight fell to the ground and curled up into a ball. Holding herself in her wings. Soul didn’t know what to do anymore. How could anyone know? This place. Whatever happened, it made Blight like this. But that didn’t matter anymore. Blight cradled herself like a baby, flicking her black tail up over her like she was trying to hide herself. You couldn’t even hear her cries. Whimpering to herself. Becoming nothing more than a helpless child in the face of this horror. A horror that haunted the sky. Whatever this world was, it was enough to break even Blight, and that… that was what made Soul shed a tear.

Oh, Blight…

Soul took a step to her. Shied away by the fear. A fear gnawing at her, a fear of the unknown. This was not the same Blight I know. Please, bring her back to me. Get rid of all this tragedy and give me my best friend back. I don’t want her this way. How… how can I help her? It seems like nothing I do works. I’m all alone, facing this by myself. A thing that I can’t stop as a pony I care for is destroyed in front of me. It’s like… twelve years ago. I’m still that child who can’t protect the ones she loves. Not even from themselves. There’s nothing I can do against this.

Soul looked up, hearing the sound of gentle taps upon the soil. That pony landed among them all. Another tear struck the dirt. Falling between… that pony’s two magenta hooves. Not even a smile left on her. It captivated Soul. Looking into the fiery eyes of a monster… who cried. It’s funny. Looking into her eyes. Their colors and shapes. I’ve looked into these eyes before. It’s like staring into those same sad eyes as my Blight.

“The memory is always too intense.” The magenta Soulblight closed her eyes tight. Squeezing out tears. Her four wings twitched. “I try so hard to squash it down and forget it. Leave it in the past, yet… it always finds a way to come back. This memory has never left us. It can never be repeated again.” She opened her eyes. Still not able to smile. Her eyes burning brighter.

“We were once weak, but we must be strong.”

The pony took a step towards Soul and Blight. A step that made Soul jump… before a rush of feathers scared her for a moment. The clopping of hooves upon the dirt as dust was kicked up. Sent flying from a skidding stop by Rainbow Dash. The cyan Pegasus stood tall… in front of Soul and Blight.

Dash held her wings out. Soul stared at her tail, but could still sense the intensity Dash must have had upon her face. Her legs didn’t even shake. She didn’t give in. Rainbow stood firm. A wall between Soul and that creature. How brave she really is. “I won’t let you hurt them. Leave Soul and Blight alone!” Rainbow? The Pegasus glanced back at Soul. She managed to smile at them both. “I’m here for both of you” she whispered to Soul.

Dashie, thank you so much. And… I’ll do the same. Soul stood up. I’ll stand with you. This monster will leave my beloved Soulblight alone.

“And so…” that dark pony muttered under her tears. “I shall snuff out that memory forever.”

10.24
Rainbow disappeared before Soul. Hearing only her screams, and Soul could only watch. Seeing that Pegasus be lifted into the air above her. Dangling down, her hooves reaching back for Soul. Held aloft by her own tail where a shroud of black took it. “Rainbow!” Too high up for Soul to even grab her. Her wings flapped. …Nothing. But Soul kept trying so hard to beat the air. Not wanting to accept she could do nothing but see this beloved pony frantically flailing to free herself. Flapping her own wings to no avail.

“Let go of her!” Shouted all the other ponies.

It all happened in a flash. Dash was there, then she wasn’t. A blur of rainbows across the air. Rainbow was thrown… thrown right into the ponies who had just tried to run for the other Soulblight. Tossing them aside like leaves. Dash cried out in pain, landing right on her head amidst them all. Applejack and Rarity fell over onto her. Tripping. Pinkie laid on the ground, under Dash. Rubbing her head. But Twilight was the one who stepped in front of them all. Somehow able… to be enraged. “I’ve heard enough. You will not torment anymore ponies!”

“I torment none” Soulblight cried. Raising her four great wings. “But I will expunge the ones who torment me. And the day I have sought for will finally be mine.”

Her tears were carried into the wind, ripped away from her in a shroud of burning, red magic and billowing lightning all across her body that made the earth shake. Rocks floating around her before turned to dust in her magic. As if the moutaintop began to burn under her hooves when she turned around to face all those ponies. Leaving her rear to Soul, left to look away from that horrific pony and down to the Blight who cried beneath Soul’s hooves.

Soulblight…

10.25
This is not you!

“You leave them all alone!” Soul leaned forward. Wanting to charge the pony. You will not hurt anypony because my Soulblight would never do that! Soul fell to the dirt, face first. Slamming down into the dust with her wings frantically flapping and her legs crawling across the ground, only to go nowhere. She felt it tugging her back there, glancing over her shoulder to find it was her own tail that was being held back. Clamped to the ground by a plume of black mist. Damn it! “Do not hurt my friends!” Soul ground her hoof into the dirt. Trying so hard to pull herself forward. That magic kept her held back. Much stronger now, pulling her butt right into the ground. “You monster, I will never be your friend!”

“Is that how you think?” That Soulblight asked. Then a cry almost made Soul’s heart sink. Coming from the black Pegasus curled up next to her. “I’m sorry! Please don’t hate me!” She wailed. Blight? I could never hate you. “I thought I was your friend, Soul” that horrible magenta pony said, placing a hoof to her chest. Like she was shocked. Maybe she was. Tears streamed down her cheeks. What is wrong with this pony? What the hell is happening? Just leave my friends alone and stop tormenting Blight. “My friend is Soulblight. She is the pony I care for. Not you!”

“But I am Soulblight. We are one in the same. I don’t understand if you care for me or hate me?” The magenta pony raised her hoof a little more, wiping her tears off. Daring to say such a thing. You are not Soulblight. You never will be. I can never care for a pony as horrible as you. Whatever you are. Soul opened her mouth to say just that… it never came.

“This is all your faults!” That Soulblight shouted, turning her head… to all the others. Even crying while having that vicious look on her face. Soul was frozen in fear. No, don’t hurt them. This is between me and you.

“I know!” the magenta pony said. “Soul needs ponies that can protect her and always be there for her. So… whoever is stronger…” she pointed her hoof at all of them. Even making them all shake on their hooves. “Is the one who can be with her. For that…”

Her eyes glowed brighter. Running red raw from her crying and the magic that coiled around her. Such a heavy feeling in the air. “You all can have your magic back.” That Soulblight craned her neck. Staring into the sky. She almost… cackled. Such fleeting tears fading away from her and into the dying wind. Disappearing just like her laughter which she strained so hard to make. Almost in pain. Who could laugh with such sadness on their faces? She found a way to. Until she stamped her hoof into the dirt, back hunched up. Glaring upon all the ponies. With that city behind her. The empty air of the wasteland behind the others. All of them… face to face. And Soul could do nothing.

I never thought it’d get to this point. They’re all going… to die.

10.26
“Soul.”

She glanced over. Finding only one pony turned away from Soulblight. To stare at her with a smile. Even though she stood there next to everypony else in the face of this monster, Rainbow was still able to be her cheerful self. As if trying to make it that everything will be alright. Exactly like she used to do as a kid. The one pony to stand by Soul’s side. To make her feel like things will not be as bad as she thought. Always with that smile. That confidence. She had it all now. Never able to stop being herself. Even now. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for you for all those years. I am serious when I say that I regret everything. You really are strong and amazing to be able to make it this far. So we can be together again. You don’t need to worry anymore. Let us handle everything. You don’t need to fear anything. Not when we are with you. Because we are your friends. And I love you.” Dash gave her one last smile. Her eyes turned away. Side by side with all the others. True courage in her eyes. A feeling that all those ponies shared.

Dash. Twilight. Fluttershy. Rarity. Applejack. Pinkie. Luna. Celestia.

…They are all here for me?

I only wish that I could have been the one to fix this all. It should be me. It made Soul whisper. “I should be the one who deals with this. I was stupid and let Blight go on feeling this way. You all don’t need to do this. Just let me deal with her.” A tear hit the ground beneath Soul.

“I will go with her if it means saving all of you.”

To bring an end to this twelve-year nightmare.

“You’ve done so much already” a soft voice spoke. So soft and gentle. Spoken from the only pony who could shed a tear with Soul. Even all this was enough to make Twilight cry. Crying over her smile. The air wafted around the princess. Like steam that billowed from the ground. Her fur standing up. Her mane fluttering, alongside everypony else next to her. Standing tall with them all. Everypony here able to show such courage after everything, and Twilight became the strongest of them all. Stepping out ahead of them all. To face the monster. Leading them all against this pain and terror. Though none of them showed that terror, and Twilight’s words, …she meant them.

“You don’t need to be alone anymore. You still have friends you can count on. And we will never leave you to face the past on your own. Because you deserve your happiness.” The princess glanced to the black Pegasus.

“You… and her.”

10.27
“You claim to be her friend” the magenta pony hissed. “You say you care about her happiness.” The air around her split open in an instant. Cut red by the jolt of lightning that echoed across the pony’s fur. With every word she spoke, the air got colder. Thicker with the blistering red shining from her own body. Sending the dirt into vapor. She held her wings out higher. “But you were the one who wanted to banish her again. You are the one who questioned Soul’s kind heart. None of you believed in her.”

“I always believed in her. I made the mistake of not trusting her when I was a kid, but not anymore. Soul is still that same pony I’ve always known” Rainbow Dash said. She locked a hoof with Twilight. The air flickering around them.

All six of them locked hooves. With their manes softly swaying in this gentle breeze that was enough to hold them high. As Soul watched them all… float together over the seared moutaintop where the golden wind swept across it all. A plume of light that burned brighter than any star. What are they doing?

“I did question her” Twilight said in the middle of them all, her horn glowing much brighter than the gold shrouding them all. “But now I see the truth… and I forgive her. I only hope she can forgive me. But that’s not something I can worry about right now.” A gust of wind struck down beneath them all. Sending the dirt up into the light. It all burned to ash within. Turned to glistening flames. A starry sky within the wall of light. Ever so bright. Soul shielded her eyes. Amazing. What is this? She looked down between her own hooves. Where she could even see… the air. The air shimmering in gold. Like a river that flowed around her. What kind of magic is this? She looked back up at them all.

To the six ponies together.

Luna and Celestia stepped forth below them. Side by side. Their horns burning. All together, they all showed it. Determination. “The only thing that matters now is getting rid of you” Celestia said.

That light burned so bright. The wasteland beyond disappeared in it. Everything behind those ponies vanished in a sea of magic. Where the only thing that could exist in it all… were those very ponies.

This magic. Incredible…

“Lies!” The other Soulblight stomped her hoof to the ground. As if her word alone made it happen, the ground around her ruptured. A crack ripping through under her. Torn open in the explosion of red flames around that pony. A blast of light. Soul yelped. Leaning away when that billowing heat struck her. And the whole world behind Soulblight became blood. A world under the dark, red Sun. As red as the magic around her. Rising to the heavens. Lashing out and striking against the gold light from the others. Like a clash between them all. “You are all lying. I will not believe you. Not after what all you ponies have done to me. No! You would never forgive her. Not for her mistakes… not for mine. This world… never has any place for pariahs.” The pony shed tears. Tears that landed under her to be scorched away in a hail of lightning.

Red lightning flashed across the mountaintop. A criss-cross around the pony. Burning away the rocks. Making Soul’s ears ring. A frightening sight to see so much lightning so close. Spiraling all around the pony.

“We are the ones here for Soul” Rainbow Dash shouted.

“And we have the power to stop you. We will do this for Soul” Celestia said.

“To end… this nightmare” Twilight closed her eyes. Her horn glowed white hot.

Is this the real power of my friends?

10.28
“Ahahahahahahaha!” Soulblight grinned, baring her fangs. Even while crying, she still forced that smile. The magenta pony hunched her back. Her wings held out like scythes. Where the lightning lit up the night sky within those wings. The sight that came was enough to make Soul’s heart stop; the sight of that pony bringing her horn down to face the others. Her head low. Grinning at them all. And lightning arced up along her horn. Such a thunderous sound. “You are all so foolish and so lost! And it shall be your end. My weaknesses are gone. There are no more promises to hold me back. No more fear. Ha! No more fear! None when I am finished here. I have suffered for too long. But that suffering gives me the power to protect Soul. You will not take her from me!”

That Soulblight actually sniffled. Her voice spoke… but not from her. “Please don’t leave me, Soul” a small whisper came. It came from the pony who lay next to Soul. Where the black Pegasus pulled her mane in front of her. Hidden under her wings. She cried. Cried just like the other Soulblight.

“Don’t hurt me anymore.”

Blight? A crack of thunder rang out, making Soul shoot a look back at it all. Thunder… and then silence. Where the world hung still for a moment. Shrouded in the red and gold that split the world between Soulblight… and the ponies who stood as Soul’s friends. Coming out from it all: Blight’s gentle voice. Speaking through her tears, through her black feathers. “Please… love me… too.”

“Like mom once did” the other Blight said.

“I will not lose it again.”

10.29
She had never seen a sight like this. Two unbelievable powers at once… before her. Swirling and clashing. Such magic that they all had. I never could have guessed that Dashie and her friends had this. That they could be so powerful together. Such strength when alone. But together… their light shining as bright as that of the other Soulblight. There was wind. She could feel it over her. Such a warming touch. But there was nothing left to hear. The entire world gone silent. To peer out upon this still and desolate world where no sound could exist, cast in the shadows of the massive towers only to be burned away in the light of these ponies. It was almost… beautiful.

Dash told me I could rely on these ponies. That I can trust them. Even if they got angry at me, I still see it. They really are all doing this for me. Dashie never lied to me. The cyan Pegasus was even up there, floating alongside the rest. Giving a small glance to Soul. As if she knew. She must have. Dash winked at Soul. Like a little sign to say that there was nothing left to worry about. That this entire nightmare was over. We will get rid of this terror and bring back a world that we can all be hopeful for. And at the end of it all, I’ll be there for Blight. She will never need to feel this way again. She treated me as her family. It’s time for me to do the same. Maybe that is it. I really do mean that much to her? So much that… the monstrous fears took over. Even if I can’t do anything now, I can still smile. Because I’ll be there to help you in the end. Our friends stand with us and I stand with you. To end this horror. Just like Dash and I did long ago. Together, we can do anything. And they are all doing the same.

Soul looked up to them all.

“You have no right to take Soul away. You are not there for her. You have proven it, that you only are there for yourself. That is how you’ve always been” Twilight’s voice boomed down upon the magenta pony. Enough to make her eyes burn in fire as the pony cried. The lightning grew wilder around Soulblight. Her own fangs burrowing into her lips. With the glow of all these ponies baring down on her. She didn’t back away. Didn’t give in. “Just as we have protected ponies before, we will do it again. …For Soul” Twilight’s horn erupted in light.

All six of the ponies disappeared in the burst of gold. Cast away. The wind disappeared. The world disappeared. All Soul could see… was that magenta pony… glance her teary eyes over at Soul. No anger. …She was sad. Clenching her eyes shut. Listening to Twilight’s last words.

“Because that is what true friends do.”

Soul screamed. The world erased. Blasted away… in a sea of rainbow. Coming down upon Soulblight. The echoing fire. The magic unlike any other. The true power of these ponies. Everything slowly faded away.

Soul looked up. Spotting her. The magenta-furred Soulblight staring up at the oncoming magic. One final tear turned to steam in her eye. She kept her eyes closed… but found the strength to smile. To speak in a hushed whisper through the chaos.

“I am her friend.”

10.30
Where the rainbow flooded the land, a storm of red erupted. A single flick of that pony’s horn.

Soulblight smiled.

Rainbow Dash?

10.31
Soul fell back. Struck so hard by the wind. It all flooded past her. The color of that rainbow sweeping her like a tide. Almost taking her away. Falling right back and flopping over, held down by the magic along her tail. Laying there to see that poor, black Pegasus collapse next to her. Her legs flailing. Becoming nothing but a puppet. Then laying still. Huddled under the hail of magic. Burst away in one final rush of light… and then… it all melted into stars.

Soul looked and saw the flicker of a firefly floating past her. A glow of magic. Another. Hundreds. Raining down around her. Falling to the dirt and then dying out upon it. A boom of thunder just as it hit the ground. Echoing loudly in the distance. Out where the barren land sent up plumes of dust clouds over it. Carried off by what was left of that magic. There was no telling what happened. Impossible. No. It all rang in her ears. The sunspots in her eyes. A sight of searing light scorched into her sight.

My whole body is shaking. My heart is racing. And I can’t think at all. Only one thought, one urge.

To turn around. To look.

Her ears perked up. Listening. Such a small pinprick in her ears. Something that glistened and speckled the air in a gentle tune. One that made her take that daring move to look and see. To see the thing that fell to earth. How it sparkled and seeped of smoke. Glowing bright in the red Sun.

Under the red sky.

A horn.

10.32
Soul’s heart dropped. Watching it shatter to pieces upon the ground. To hundreds of… purple shards.

There was nopony left up there in the sky. They all vanished. Vanished in a hail of floating purple feathers. Dancing in the wind. Gently touching down upon the dirt. A bed of feathers where they all met with their master, and the other ponies upon which they covered.

Soul felt herself tingle. Shaking. But something else. Something warm, seeping over her cheek. She put a hoof to it, pulling it back and looking. It almost blended in. Soaking into her own fur. As warm as it was on her face. Blood. Her eyes settled upon the little shards, how they tumbled along the ground. All that was left of that horn. Caught in the wind and sprinkling down into the blood that soaked the ground. Somepony moaned. Almost like a dozen moans. Where Soul saw the purple alicorn laying there. A heap on the ground. Not moving. Just a sigh. A sigh and blood that flowed down her head. Her entire mane turned to red. Blackened red. Or was it…

The hole in her head!

Smoke twirled around her head. Scorched deep into where her horn once was. It made Soul want to scream. Scream at the blood on herself. Scream at the horror. Nothing. Nothing! I can’t scream. Twilight!

W-what just happened?

Rainbow Dash. Rarity. Pinkie. Applejack. Fluttershy. Celestia and Luna. They all lay there surrounding the broken princess. Where not a sound came from them. Nothing. Even the blood was coating all their furs. One feather fell. Landing in such calm upon Dash’s head. Then taken away in the sea of smoke. None of them moved.

“Rainbow!!!!” Soul screamed out.

Thunder cracked. The loud clang of a hoof digging deep into the dirt. Somepony huffed. The only pony left standing. From where the towers rose tall in the sky, Soulblight. Like the flap of her wings cast away what was left of the magic across her body. Not anger. Not joy. Nothing of the kind existed upon her. Even if she was the last pony to step out from the light. Her steps had no confidence. Only pain as she walked to the ponies who lay there, torn and crippled upon the ground.

There’s nothing I can do. Please stop!

Stop this nightmare!

“I’ve… had enough of these games” that Soulblight muttered.

10.33
“Twilight Sparkle” the air chilled to ice. “Whatsoever happened to all your boisterous and pandering preaches about friendship and tolerance?” Soulblight slowly stepped across the ashen ground. Kicking up the darkness in her hooves. Shrouded in the light of her glowing red magic. “You claim that I am unsuitable for friendship or tolerance. What makes me unworthy, I always wondered? What was it that made ponies reject me from the start? To cause me so much pain. To torment me when I’m weak and leave me with nothing.”

The crack of glass. Her hoof crushing down upon what was left of Twilight’s horn. Wind howled. Watching that terrifyingly somber pony so casually walk. Approach the ones who lay defeated at her own hooves. With nothing left to stop her. There is nothing. What can I do?

“Only for those ponies to have no match against me when I finally show them just what my longing and fears have created. You all are no different from them all.”

Celestia and Luna. They stepped up. Flaring their wings out. A wall between that pony and the fallen friends. The princesses of Equestria… drenched in blood in an instant.

Soul felt her heart stop. Not even seeing the light until it was too late. A blaze of red magic. Carrying forth the red blood from the princesses… and their screams. As she saw a sight that made her shiver. Made her silent. Like it all happened again. Before. The terror of it. Celestia and Luna collapsed. Screaming. Screaming so loud at the horror that was done to them. It made Soul want to scream. Watching… their legs tumble away from them. The princesses forced to watch those poor limbs fall away from them in a trail of blood. Cut away in an instant. No!

Don’t do this.

Their screams haunted Soul. It made her cry. It made the princesses cry. I never wanted it to end up like this. Forgive me!

“Friendship never mattered. Love… is fleeting” Soulblight muttered under her breath. “The trust and hope I once held turned out to be a fool’s weapons. Much like it was for you all. It only leaves one… as a broken husk.” No matter how much blood coated that pony’s magenta fur. No matter how dastardly she looked in the glow of the magic around her. Even with her icy breath. She still… cried. “Broken when it is all taken away. Never. I will never feel that again.”

Leave them alone.

Twilight laid still. Rainbow Dash laid still. The princesses… the most pitiful sight. Frightful. Even more when… the others got up. No!

“Even the Elements of Harmony, such a false title, can never hope to inflict that pain on me again. You will not take from me!” As if her voice sent out the gust of wind. Wind that struck upon them all. It made Soul’s mane flow. It made Soulblight’s long ponytail flip into her face. A force that slammed down upon all of Soul’s world. Applejack. Fluttershy. Struck aside. Left to lay. Still. Silent. With their eyes closed. Not able to see or hear the thing that was too much. “NO!” Soul screamed. Screaming with the others. As Rarity and Pinkie… disappeared over the ledge.

Only their screams echoing from below.

Soul fell to her legs. How… how could you? Blight. How? L-leave them alone. Why? Why can’t I say anything? She… she doesn’t listen to me. She is in her own world. As my entire world is taken from me.

10.34
Twilight coughed. Trembling on her side. Her hoof came up to touch the empty hole in her head. Feeling it and taking away the blood that flowed out. “M-my… my horn.” A gentle whisper. She tried to step up. Failing. Twilight lay still on the ground… under the shadow of the magenta pony above her. Staring down at her. The pony flicked her ponytail out of her face and smirked.

“Princess of Friendship.”

The most horrific scream that could ever strike any ear. The only thing that made Twilight jump up and flail. When a magenta hoof slammed down into her leg. A strike. Something that made the most sickening sound. A crack piercing the air. Almost as loud as Twilight’s own scream. The poor pony tried, tried so hard to pull her hind leg out from under Soulblight’s hoof. Pinned deep under it. Her leg made no move at all. Only folding in on itself… so slowly. Cracking. Grinding. Something that made Soul sick to her stomach. Yet this was not enough, not enough to make that magenta pony stop. She leaned closer to Twilight. “You think you can take her from me. Be her friend? Your lack of love for her has made you weak. You don’t deserve her. You don’t care at all. While I protected her and cared for her like my own daughter! Even after so many ponies treated me like shit, I still had the compassion to care for her. What have you done?! Everything is given to you. You fight for nothing. You don’t know hardship. So… a true friend is meaningless to you. Not when you have sooooo many friends already. Selfish bitch!”

Soul’s skin crawled. Twilight screamed out so loud when Soulblight stomped back down upon her leg. “None of you truly care. None. Just seeing how lustful you all are in wanting to take Soul away… pursuing your own desires just to make me feel lonely again. To tear…” Her hoof slammed down once more. Again and again. “Away… the only… precious thing in my…” Her hoof rose tall.

Don’t.

“Life!” Twilight’s scream… forever haunting. When that hoof came down and whatever it struck finally snapped.

I’m sitting here. Sitting here like a stump. Useless. Watching the only ponies in my life be taken from me. Be put through so much pain. It’s the entire world; the entire world was frozen solid into this eternal nightmare from which there was no waking. I’m useless. Reduced to this helpless filly. Watching my entire world be taken. The entire world that I’ve dreamed for is ending. The chance I had to finally have my life back. This life that I wanted for both me… and Blight. Is it really her? Is it you, Blight? The one who is taking that world from us? After I could see it for both of us. After how happy you were. And your happy face is gone… just like that dream. I’m just a filly again… watching the ponies I love be destroyed in front of me. A repeat of that world I thought I left.

What do I need to do to stop it? What do I need… to sacrifice?

“Get off her!”

10.35
No!!!

Rainbow Dash, she was the one who took to the sky. The one, the only one left to stand against this monster. The last pony to try and stop her. Because she was the one slammed her own hoof right into the back of Soulblight’s head. A cracking kick of her hind legs. Ripping the silver hairs. A buck to the head that made Soulblight lean forward from the hit. …But the four-winged pony didn’t even flinch. All it did… was make her lift her hoof off of Twilight.

No. Get away, Dashie. “Run!” You always were brave. This is not the time. Leave us!

Soulblight turned her head. Soul saw the hate in her eyes. “And you… you were the one who started it all. You were the first… to abandon her. …You don’t love her.”

Run!

Blood splattered the ground.

10.36
Twilight laid there… her horn gone. Her leg crushed. The princesses, crying. Such agony. Left there in sorrow over their missing legs. Pinkie and Rarity were gone. Blood soaked the mountaintop. A moment that reflected the past. The true horror. The horrible and ghastly things that unfolded. Like a slow torment. Forced to watch it all with nothing that you can do to stop it. Till you have nothing left. Till the only two ponies left happened to be your best friends in the world. Where one stood tall over the other. The other, torn away. Torn into such a sight that would make your heart harden. As it did. Like a rock formed in there. Till Soul… could no longer cry. There was no way to. As, in an instant, her most beloved pony’s entire world was ripped away. Taken away by Soul’s best friend.

A blue feather set down before Soul. Dripped in blood. The only feather left.

I sat here… nothing more than a useless idiot. Trying too hard to hide and run from this moment where my life is taken from me. Where I once thought I knew how my beloved friend really was, and to think that I could be the one to give her a smile. One that would last forever. I was never the one to do that. I was never meant to bring joy or happiness to any pony. Everywhere I go, misery follows.

Maybe that’s how I am. For I have destroyed… the most important pony in my life.

Rainbow Dash groaned. Rolling onto her side to face Soul, with tears streaming from her eyes. As she felt the truth of what had happened to her. Where Soul felt only hollow. I see her pain. I see her misery. And, yet, I can’t feel for it. No. I can’t feel sad or upset or even angry. No. But I feel something. Feel something to look upon Dash like this. Looking upon a Pegasus who had just lost… the most important things to her.

Dash tapped a hoof to the blood pooling around her. Looking at it. Like she realized it was her own. For it was. Flowing. Soiling her beautiful fur coat. That is not what made her fearful. As she twitched. Her back reeling up and down. Trying so hard to make something happen. Just the sickening flow of blood. That was when Dash made nothing more than a whimper. No strength or courage. She rolled onto her belly. Crying into her hooves. Not able to see the thing behind her.

The holes in her back.

You took… her wings from her. How could you?

But Soulblight… she didn’t express one shred of regret. Towering over the downed Pegasus. She only shook her head at Dash. “You know, Soul almost lost her own wings when she was banished. Torn right from her. What a dreadful experience for a Pegasus, it must be. So I return the favor…” Dash yelped. Reeling up from the sharp kick into her gut. Soul’s heart trembled. “And none of it had to happen if you had not cast her aside like trash. You claim to be her best friend? Her lover? You abandoned her!” Please stop.

Rainbow almost screamed at the top of her lungs. A sound that hit too hard home. Struck so hard in the stomach. It almost made Dash flip over. It made her curl up. Crying. How can you do this to Dashie? What is wrong with me? What can I do? I… I can’t do this…

Soulblight stepped around Dash. Staring down at her. “Such a horrid mistake you made. Something I’d not expect from a friend to another friend. A mistake I’d expect you to make again. After all, you had no problem with Twilight threatening my Soul.” Dash shook, she coughed so loudly. As if trying to say something. Just a blood-filled hack coughed from her throat. Soul saw the blood that speckled the ground around Dash. She can’t even speak. She’s going to kill Dashie. She’s hurt, laying there with useless wings. And nopony is there to comfort her. I’m not there to hold her. Like she did for me long ago. I… I can’t…

“That’s okay though…” that magenta pony whispered. Kneeling down, down until her mouth whispered into Dash’s ear. “I shall grind your mistakes into the ground. As you will become. Mere dust spread upon the ashes of the entire world.”

“As before, it shall be again.”

10.37
Dashie.

You gave so much for me. You stood with me during tough times. Even if you made mistakes, you never lost your love for me. You brought me friends and a life that I love. You gave me hope that I can one day become what I truly wanted to be, and be able to reach that dream together. You were the inspiration for my life. The joy in my dreams. And the hope for my future. You are the one for me.

You love me.

And I’m sitting here, watching you be taken from me. Watching you suffer… and your future is taken from you. Everything is taken. All because of me. You deserve your life. You don’t deserve a pony who can do nothing for you. Who has become nothing. Yet that’s not who I am.

I want you to be the best. I want you to be happy. I failed Blight. I can’t fail you too. I… I can’t do that. I can’t watch anymore.

N-Nimbus… Nimbus once told me… she wanted me to have friends. I remember. I remember what you said. So, I will. I’ll be the friend that Rainbow Dash needs. The one who will give… everything.

10.38
“I’ll go with you!”

Those words, those words spoken from a bleeding heart and a world of sorrow, were what was needed to silence everything. For everypony to lay still. For Dash to stop crying. And for those terrible things to stop being spoken from the voice of Soul’s best friend. It was as if the sky itself finally hung still. And the only thing left that would dare to move was Soul herself.

Shaken. Stunned. She had really just said that. But anything must be done to protect them. Anything. Even this.

“Please. If you don’t hurt anymore ponies. If you, please, just reverse all of this. Send everything back to how it was, I promise… I’ll…”

Nimbus wanted me to be friends with somepony. Throughout all my life, I seeked a pony to be that friend to. I wanted there to be ponies I can finally make happy. This… this is how. And I accept it. I’ll make my friends happy… so they can have the lives they wanted. This is my gift.

My gift.

I do this for them. “I’ll leave them all behind… and be with you, forever. Nopony will ever take me away. It can just be you and me. I promise.”

The magenta pony set her hoof back down so softly. She locked eyes with Soul. Teary eyes that shimmered under the bloody Sun. Till she blinked and wiped her face with a blood-smeared hoof. Even with blood upon her, she came across as a pony… who had no cares. Her wings finally relaxed. Her ears fell. Yet she was able to do it. To smile. A smile upon this pony. No matter what it looked like, it was sickening. Sickening that a horrible pony can be so happy after what she had just done. After making me do this. But it’s my decision. She didn’t cause this. No.

It was all me. I didn’t pay attention to my best friend’s sadness. It’s okay. I’ll make it all right. That Soulblight spoke the words. The words that told her… this was the right thing to do. “Y-yes… I’ll do anything for you. We can be together… like we talked about long ago. You… you won’t abandon me? You won’t leave me?”

Long ago. Long ago… I dreamed of a life for all of us. Not this. Soul had no choice.

“I promise.”

10.39
Her ears perked up. Did I hear that right? It sounds so unreal. Something she shouldn’t say. No, it isn’t something Soul would say. She’s going to be with me? After all I’ve done? She opened her eyes, expecting to see magenta fur along the legs she hid her face in. Met only with such soft, black fur that tickled her face, and Soulblight found the courage; what Soul said could still be heard, it made her look up from beneath her legs. From under her black wings. Where she found herself laying on her side. Dirt caught in her fur. Tears soaking the ground and herself. The tears of a monster. Yet… I’m still going to… to have Soul?

It was true.

Blight found Soul slowly strutting along. Past her… and all Blight could see was a defeated mare. Her head hung low… even if she tried to form a smile. Yet her hooves dragged across the ground. Something so unreal of a pony who was once so strong. Letting go of her defense; she will finally be with me. A pony who walked towards the one who made this all happen. To my… real self. Somepony that made Blight shake. That magenta pony leapt over the still Rainbow Dash. Standing tall. Like she waited for Soul with a smile. She is mine. She is finally mine and nopony will take her from me. She will have her home. Funny. …These thoughts are really mine. This will… it is true. I don’t even have the courage to lash out at myself anymore. Even when Blight looked across at the ponies who lay there. Bleeding and broken. Crying and moaning. The same ponies who once portrayed themselves to me as friends. Not anymore. Not now when I know what they will do to me.

Is it still wrong?

I want to speak her name. I want to call to Soul. I can’t. Is it my shame? Because I know this is wrong. Blight still looked down at her hooves and saw them shaking. So much that there could be no way for her to stand. Only left to lay there. I don’t know what it is. I used to only want the best for Soul. I can’t shake it anymore. I truly want her. I truly want her as my friend and nopony there to stand in the way. To hurt us again. I’m not sure if this is me anymore. Soul. You expressed such desire to want us to be with these ponies. To have a life together in this world. And now it’s all cast away. Carried off into the red sky above the looming black towers beyond. Out there, a world that slowly wilted and shimmered behind the daunting magenta pony with the four wings. A world that I am bringing upon Soul.

This is all my fault.

I am wrong.

… “Soul…”

That little word that she whispered. That she heard her own shame in, her own regrets. The pain of an extraordinarily long life. Coming out. Calling for one pony. The only pony I can trust to… to hear my cries. It was what made Soul stop and turn to her. Looking down upon a defeated black Pegasus. Can you feel my sorrow? Can you see just how much I wish… I wish I could change everything? How much I’d love for things to go back to normal. But they won’t. I can’t make it so. Not when I feel so confused. Not when I’m so afraid. I was once the pony you could look up to. Maybe you can be that for me now. Please. Don’t leave me like this. Don’t leave everything we worked so hard to make together. I am so truly sorry. As I look up into your beautiful, golden eyes, I can at least feel a little calm in finding the glow of a young and kind mare still beating in those orbs. The pony I watched grow into this. I get to see you one last time… with that shred of happiness.

My final solace.

Soul did not walk off. Not at all. That kind mare never left Blight’s side. She still is that same mare. Even when she is faced with me. I’m proud of her. And so deeply sorry.

“May I talk with her for just a moment, …please?” Soul whispered.

The magenta Soulblight nodded.

10.40
There was a shadow over Blight. Something for her to look up to and find that Soul stood above her. As if she were some sort of pitying mother looking upon her hurt child. For this is what I’m reduced to. I’m nothing. Not even worth her coming to me anymore to comfort me. I don’t know why she wants to see me. Why she wants to be with me. Those days are gone. Finished. Where we could be together like a happy family. Looking out for one another. No. Now that she knows what I wanted all along. I only wanted her. All I cared for was for her own love. So much that I do this: take away her life. I’m horrible, as horrible as that monster over there.

What even am I anymore? Am I me? Am I that mare who protected Soul and wished for her happiness? I feel so ashamed to be in her presence. Blight managed to speak up to her. “I’d apologize for everything. I truly would, but it won’t make much difference. Now that you’ve seen just what it is that I am. The horrible things that go through my mind. I’m… I’m not a pony who deserves your forgiveness.” I never was.

All my life, all I’ve known is suffering and pain. I can still hear it, hear the cries and terror running through my mind. I still feel the agony all over my body as if it could seep into my heart. Rending my soul apart. Could that be why I feel this… this numbness in me? The reason I can’t cry? Maybe I’ve run out of tears. After all these countless years, I can’t cry over it anymore. Blight lay her head back down on the dirt. Looking down from Soul. Just staring… staring past the pony and to all the others. All the blood that lay splattered. Spilled. Draining from open wounds and crying mouths. From ponies I once knew, torn to shreds. I felt I didn’t want it to lead to this. Is that what I wanted? It’s like I’ve forgotten my hopes and dreams; maybe this always was my dream. To be rid of the memories. Become that horrible creature once more. Who I am. I’m not even that pony I used to be.

“I still remember it all” Blight whispered.

We sit before the fireplace, holding one another. Sharing our stories and tales. Bonding and becoming close. Forging a future for us. You learned a lot about me. I grew happy to hear your soft voice in my ear. And I betrayed you. As you never would learn about me. What it would do. “We had dreams. Goals. Lives to wish for. Together. In a world most familiar.” She spoke down to her hooves. “They all seemed so pleasant. Like a world beyond the one I know. I’m so foolish. So very foolish.”

Your dream, our dream of a world for us together where we could live normal lives. Have friends and be free of suffering. Yet the suffering never leaves. It clings. Holds to us like a plague. This billowing flame in my heart. Always burning me. I hear the nightmare within. I still see it all. And it haunts me to this point. To the point where I… I turned my back on you and on our dream. Where all I seek is an end to the torment that has lasted a lifetime. A torment none of you would understand. Not even I. All I can do… is feel this. The fear. A fear I don’t want to happen again.

“I can never make those dreams real for us. I was doomed to fail. Pushed into a corner. Never able to be the one who could protect you and see you happy, not when I’m just this child who is backed into a corner. All alone. How could I help you when I can’t even help myself? I am always a victim to my fears. Enough to hurt the others around me. …Maybe that’s why I was left alone so very long ago. I am always useless.”

Soul didn’t speak. Good. She doesn’t need to. Not to me. No. For nopony would ever want to be with me. No, that is why… I destroyed everything for her. To keep her for myself. “I didn’t want to lose you too.”

The sad truth.

“I was never meant to be a part of your life. Something like me, I’m not even a true pony. What kind of pony does this to others? I’m… I’m not a good pony.” Blight slinked her head down into her forelegs. Tucking her wings in tight. “Not a good pony. That is why I was always taken away from those I loved. That is why nopony ever saw me as… the sweet, little Pegasus I wanted to be. I… I… I was going to lose you too. I was so afraid.” Blight squealed into her fur. “You are the last thing that makes me happy. I don’t want you to suffer. I don’t want us to be apart. I don’t want other ponies to take you from me. You were the only pony left to care for me. You are the only pony who would care for a monster like me.”

I’m a monster. Not a pony.

“And I ruined your life too. Of course…”

“I deserve nothing from you.”

10.41
Two hooves slipped under her. Blight couldn’t even widen her eyes in time before they clasped her tightly and such a gentle whisper touched her soul. “Come here.” Blight didn’t even do a thing. She didn’t need to. Soul was the one who pulled her up with all her strength. Where Blight gasped… held against Soul’s chest. The mare sitting down, hugging Blight against her. Her black hooves left to dangle at her sides. Blight could only stare off into the world beyond this moment. With no words to say.

She’s actually hugging me? She’s hugging me. And I don’t even have the will to hug her back. Just held there like a baby against Soul’s chest, such a gentle touch of a hoof running through Blight’s mane. Why would you do this to me?

“Oh, Blight, …I missed this. You’re still so soft. Still the only pony I’d always want to hold like this. Just never let go. Have it go on forever. Forget about everything else.” Soul sighed into her ear. Such a tormented voice. Such kind things to say to me. When I don’t deserve it. I hate it. I hate being pampered like this. I… I… Blight sniffed. No tears came. She gave up. Relax. Fall into this embrace. There’s no point in trying to get away. I’m… I’m not soft. I’m not a good pony to hold. My… body is as hard as my heart. I’m as cruel as can be. An emotionless and hateful husk. Somepony who would kill so many just to wrongly take what doesn’t belong to me. How can you do this? How… “How could you hug me? Why? Why hug a monster like me?”

“Shhh… shhh” Soul tightened her hug. She slid her hoof under Blight’s hair. Such a soft stroke down the back of her neck. Don’t make me cry. Stop. Blight’s legs shook. Laying against Soul. Such a safe place. Is that what it was? Like before when she would hug me. Keep me safe from all the hurt and fears. Is that what you’re trying to do? Soulblight let out a hushed breath. Silent when two massive wings shadowed her. Soul’s mighty wings came down over her.

You are.

“Just let me hold you. Please. Let me remember. I want to hold you… so we can both remember. To be together again. Please… please, can you hold me too?” Soul? You shouldn’t ask that of me. Because you should know that’s my weakness. To protect you and cherish you. Don’t make me indulge in my desires. Don’t treat me. You should hate me. Hurt me. I wouldn’t even mind if you were to strike me. Stomp on me and crush my wings. Break my heart and leave me with nothing. It’s all I deserve. So please don’t torture me like this. Don’t pretend to like me. I’m not that motherly pony you had to care for you as a child. I’m a killer. I’m a monster. I can’t hug you like I used to do. “I can’t.”

“Please. If only one thing can happen before it all ends, I want it to be a hug with you. Don’t let me go. Don’t let me forget. Please” Soul whispered in her teary embrace. I… I am not worthy of feeling joy. But you are. Fine. Even if it pains me to do this with you. This false hug of a time long lost. Blight slinked her hooves under Soul’s forelegs. Crossing her back. She held Soul to her. Her black feathers brushing against Soul’s magenta feathers. Wings locked. As if their wings held to the other’s wings. I’m hugging her. Just like I used to. I shouldn’t be doing this. I shouldn’t enjoy this. But I can’t stop myself. I… I can’t… Blight buried her face into Soul’s chest.

10.42
“Oh, Blight. This is how I remember it. Your hugs. They’re like the touch I’ve always wanted from a pony. Why is it that I love to be held by you? Why do I like keeping you safe in my wings?”

I don’t understand why she is talking like this. This isn’t you. The last time I made a mistake, you hated me for years. Now I’ve ruined your life once again. Don’t treat me like this. Hate me again. Please. Punish me. Destroy and ruin me so I can know what it’s like to be alone again. That’s what I need. I only deserve to go back to suffering. So I can never exploit another pony again. And I’ll always miss this.

Your soft touch. Your loving embrace. The feelings I’ve lost long ago. Why do you care for me just like I remember being cared for? You should just leave me too. I didn’t deserve it back then. I never wanted to feel that loss again. Why did I let myself be put into this horrible nightmare again? I never should have come with you. And then you would be happy right now with Rainbow Dash and your friends. Just like everypony else. Except me. I’ll lose you too. I’ll know that loss again. Because I’m the one who drove you away. “You should not hug me. I’m not that pony anymore. I’m not the one who watched you grow up. Who kept you warm. Who protected you. I’ve… I’ve abandoned you. And I inflicted that loss upon you.”

It can’t be. I really did do all this. I really did betray myself. I abandoned what I wanted to be. I betrayed… Soul’s wish. The wish she made so long ago. I am not the one for it. I never was. And now I’m going to take you. Crush your world and take you. After so long of being alone and feeling lost. This is how I act. I inflict that pain that I’ve always known onto you: my best friend.

“You should not come with me. Leave me and go with your friends. If you go with me, you’ll never be happy.”

10.43
“Soulblight” it made her shiver. That hoof that tickled the back of her neck. Soul massaged her. Such a methodical touch. A caring touch for a child. So nice and gentle. Something she never does. Never to me. She should never be this nice to me. Stop making me feel. Stop making me so weak inside. I can feel my heart writhe. The tingles across my body. From such a serene voice and loving touch. Unlike anything Soul has done before. Soul’s hug got tighter and her countless feathers pricked along Blight’s fur. Running over her. Those massive wings slowly rising over her and then falling once more.

She made Blight look up to her with teary eyes. Finding Soul with her eyes closed. A smile across her face. Leaning down atop Blight’s head. Such a smooth and calm breath that glided over Blight. As if Soul was in total peace. And there was no way of telling why she was. Did everything leave her? Has she forgotten? But she held Blight like it was truth in her feelings. Like she really was happy. This is the happiest I’ve seen her in a long time. Not even with Dash. There’s something else to her and it was a mystery she could not solve. Blight didn’t try, only falling back down against the soft, magenta fur. Cradled by this mare. In a way I’ve not seen since… since you… Nimbus.

She’s holding me like you did for her. Soft and caring.

This is what… Soul loved. What she longed for. What I was supposed to be for her. It was…

My destiny.

“You always are the one who was there for me. You never changed” Soul whispered. “So kind of you to care for me and protect me. Something no other ever could do for me.”

Do not pity me. Do not give in to me.

10.44
“Do not go with me. Remember what it is you want. Don’t give in to my heinous desires” Blight pleaded. “You must be with your friends. Go to the life you wanted. …Leave me.” Remember what it is that I am.

Lightning cracked across the sky.

Do not destroy yourself. “They are the ones you love.”

“There are many ponies I love. My life is not to be given to just one. I am here to make everypony happy. Because that is what I wanted for so long” Soul said. “For my friends, for my world. And for you. I could never leave you out.”

What are you saying?

“I am choosing to do this because it is the right thing to do. It is the best thing for me and everypony else. To run away… together with you.” Soul! Do not do this! Blight pushed herself away. To look up to the mare. Met with a hoof to her mouth. Soul silenced her. Where she could stare into her golden eyes. Seeing her own fiery eyes within. Split in the void of such pain. Yet they glowed just as Soul’s eyes did. Locked together. An eternal embrace. Within the kindest eyes, the most matured eyes to ever be seen upon this magenta Pegasus. And that was when it became true. Soul means this.

“I can leave it all behind. I can give it all. Just like I did twelve years ago. As my way to show my love to everypony else. My way to protect them… and to protect somepony else. Somepony so special to me. There was only one pony who cared for me enough… for me to actually believe what I’m about to say.” Soul’s hoof slinked down. Touching under Blight’s chin. Pushing up, and both looked to one another.

Blight looked up at Soul.

Soul looked down at Blight.

Together in this embrace.

“You did not care for me…”

10.45
“You were the one who raised me” Soul finished. “And so I will gladly give it up to be with you. To be with the only pony in my life… that I can call my family. Somepony just like me. Who stood there with me as I did with her. Like family would do; …like sisters would do.”

Blight’s eyes widened.

“I will go with you, …my big sister, Soulblight. Forever.”

Soul?

“And that is because…” The world froze. Blight only saw her. It all faded. Torn away. Only one truth could exist here. Deep inside the embrace of feathers. Where the darkness met magenta.

10.46
Blight felt the kiss upon her cheek.

A kiss from the pony… the pony that I… I…

She heard the last words spoken to her. Soul’s voice fading away. Stricken to ash in the void of this whitened world. Leaving the touch of something unlike any other upon her cheek. Something… I remember. I remember… words like this.

10.47
“I love you.”

10.48
It was wind in her hair, whispering to her. Nothing harsh. Nothing foul. Calm and gentle wind. A little breeze that surfed the land. Even in this world, such peace could exist. As if all the terror vanished. Where no blood seeped into the soil. No cries of pain to curse her ears. Nothing left of the horrors of a past so long gone. Gone within this realm, where the flowers tickled her hooves.

It’s gone. Is this peace? Am I free? May it all be gone, and for me to be alone here. I am alone. They’re all gone. Soul. Rainbow Dash. The princesses. Everypony. Just me. Alone in this gentle plain. As I look up into a sky, a sky running in the light of a golden sun. In the cloudless sky, the soothing touch of something to her face. What is this? Just looking up at the sun, it feels… strange. This sensation over my fur. This feeling inside. It’s lovely. I don’t know what it is. I don’t remember. Even when I place my hoof to my cheek, running it over that feeling. It only reminds me of the kiss. Like it’s all over my body. All from the sun. It’s soft. Something soft against me; these… flowers.

Blight looked.

All across, the world that once stood… was gone. Taken away in the breeze… where snow flurried through the air. Not snow. Those are. Another breeze came in, she watched them all be taken away from their mothers. The petals that flooded the sky. Given away from… the sea of colors. Everywhere she looked. The most serene scene of nature. Unlike any other. No land of snow. No world of towns or cities. No pony to be seen. Only the colors. The colors of endless flowers. Sifting and dancing. The sounds of them all dancing at once in the breeze like thunder. What is all this? Why do I feel this way? Her hoof scratched the ground below. Tickling her back and her legs as she sat in the bed of them all. She looked down at it, at these flowes she sat among. As tall as her legs. Their beautiful petals open to her. Bared. As if they truly wanted her to see them. For they looked up to her as she did down to them. I’ve never seen flowers so gorgeous before. Not since…

Blight touched a hoof to one. Staring. They’re… they’re just like the ones that Soul gave to me. Is this your gift to me, Soul? Was this what you wanted? To remind me… just how much you care for me. Like the first time you showed… your love to me. For that is what it was. Can it be true?

Blight tipped the flower up to her. So careful not to pluck it from its stem. Gripped in its beauty. Like Soul had never left. She never did. These flowers… why… why am I so taken by them? Why do they remind me… of a time so long past?

“This isn’t the first time.” Blight ran the tip of her hoof along the flower’s petals.

I love you.

They rang in her head. Made her twitch. “It isn’t the first time.” Like a bell in her head. A swirl of voices. All saying the same thing. The voices. But they don’t madden me. They aren’t like the others. For the first time, I’m without them. “You love me?” So many voices… but they weren’t Soul’s. Who are they?

Blight let the flower go. It swayed in front of her. Mesmerizing. I love you.

Who are you? Why are you saying this to me? Why do you remind me of… somepony else? You’re not Soul. You’re just a flower. A flower brimming in shimmering, fiery petals. They shone of the sunlight. I’m in a world, alone with flowers. But this one… I can’t stop staring at it. There’s something about you. Something about you… “That makes me feel this way.” Like I’ve never felt this way with Soul. With nopony else. What is it about you? A mere flower, no different from all the others. And you make my heart flutter. A flower. A…

Blight’s eyes grew.

A blossom.

“A blossom… beautiful and gentle. Who knows nothing but love from those who… care for her.”

I love you.

Her tears watered the flowers. “I love you too…” she tapped her hoof to its petals. I always have. “Ever since I first felt like I had met a pony who truly wanted me, I loved you. These feelings of mine, how long I’ve held them in. When I first saw you as a mere child… you awoke something in me. The first I’ve felt the need to care for another. To be there. Or that is what I thought. This feeling of mine… I can’t shake it. I know that I’ve… felt this before. Somewhere deep in the pain and memories so long lost.”

Deep inside. One hoof touched the blossom. The other set upon her chest. Over where something beat and fluttered within. A feeling so strong. I can’t get rid of it. I don’t want to because… whatever it is is making me cry. Cry these tears that aren’t born of sadness. Because I’m not sad. I’m not lonely. Even alone in this land of blossoms. I feel at home. At home in the blossoms. Surrounded by something so familiar.

A world that once was.

A time that I… remember. This place. These flowers.

“This is where… you made me happy, mom.”

10.49
You were here, by my side. This is where you gave me the piece of myself… that I always cherished. This is the time when no pain or sadness ever could exist. Not when you did this for me. Not when you held me, kissed me, whispered my name… my name so lovingly. For the first time.

“I’m crying. Just like I cried back then. Until I took my first look upon this world and saw a face.” Blight lowered her hoof over her chest. Her wings rose tall at her sides. “That was when I first felt happy. I awoke in your embrace. Small and frail. And I heard the words that you first spoke to me. The first words I ever heard.”

I love you.

“Mom…”

It never left you.

Blight looked up. Slowly. It tingled all across her body. That sensation.

Even all these years, you still have it. My sweet, beautiful flower.

She looked behind her. Only the flowers greeted her. All around her, they danced. Caught in the smooth breeze upon her back. She couldn’t speak. I can’t. For it touched her so deep inside. Something beyond words. Beyond imagination. In this world where no pain existed, she felt… free.

Never forget what I always taught you. No matter what happens, you will always be loved by somepony. The years may pass, and the world may change. But you’ll never lose it. It will always be there. I will always be there.

You’ll always be there. In a moment of peace, Soulblight looked down upon the lone blossom. The one that she touched. The only one who looked to her. …I… I remember all the pain. All the sorrow of my life. Like that is all that ever existed. There was never a moment when I thought I could be happy. That happiness could be a gift for me. I thought it was always something I would be without. But she loves me. She loves me. “She loves me… just like… you did.”

It made Blight’s eyes widen. Breathing so hard. She had to wipe her tears. Wipe them and smile. Because I know it’s true. There was not always pain and misery. And… and I feel… so happy inside. To hear the words again. “I never thought I’d hear them. I thought I was unworthy.”

You never were. From the day you were born… there was always somepony who loved you. I love you… now and forever.

She brought both hooves around the blossom. “Mom!” Her tears fell upon that flower. “I can hear you. I can… still feel your touch; your kiss on my cheek. You… you never left me. You are still here for me. You… still love me?”

I could never stop loving my most beautiful flower. Never forget that. Even when we part, I am still there with you. Your family… never left you. It is still there for you. I am here for you. Just like she now is for you. You no longer need to fear. You are worth having love.

“Mommy… please… tell me. Even after everything, do you think I’m a good girl? Am I good enough… to be a pony?”

10.50
My darling daughter. You’ve never changed. Even if the years have passed by, you still are the same little pony I remember. Hehe, you always were a worrier but you never lost what it was that made you special to me. You always… so deeply love the ponies who are in your life. The ponies, even the animals. Just like long ago.

…When you were just a filly, you always showed such kindness to those you loved. It warmed my heart forever to know that I had a daughter like you. You’re sweet and gentle to everything you love. I still remember how much you protected the ones you cared for, no matter how small they were. The beauty you made with your own hooves. How sweet your laughter was. You were the purest spirit I’d ever seen. There is no way a mother couldn’t take pride in that. Even if your mind became clouded, I still see it… the pony you always were. I know things have been so tough for you and I deeply regret not being there to guide you. But you still proved to me that you never truly did lose who you were. You were a pony all alone in this world… until you found her. Where I failed to guide you, you succeeded in guiding a poor filly who you never needed to help… but you did because you will always remain that kind pony I watched grow up. You raised her, you taught her. You protected her. You even held her when she was sad. …I… I only wish I could have done the same for you.

“Mom… it’s not your fault.”

The flower swayed in the wind. You became a better mare than I ever did. You were the better mare for that pony… and she loves you because of it.

Never forget what she said. She loves you. Just as I always have.

“Mom, …will I… ever see you again? I… I want you. I need you.”

And I miss you… so very much. But I’ll always be here. And now… you have others who will be there for you. Never forget that you truly are worthy of love. You have a family now. And… I’m so blessed to be able to be with you one last time. …To answer… your question…

You will always be my sweet and good little girl. No matter what happens. You are a pony. You are no monster.

And I will cherish you forever. You are my flame… and my Soul.

10.51
Your flame and your soul. I… Blight gulped.

You will always be there for me. I never lost you. And I will always keep you… close to my heart. Tears fell down Blight’s cheeks, falling upon the hooves she reached out with to touch upon the flower. Cradle it between. Until it snapped. So gently. So soft. As Blight pulled the flower… free of its stem. Close to her heart. Pressed so gently to her chest.

Under the breeze, she held it close.

“This… must be what this feeling is. Like when you used to hug me. When you held me.” As I hold you now. We are together again. Love. This is the feeling of love. I feel it now. “It’s… so warm. I feel… warm again. I feel… happy.” So this is the feeling of having a loved one there for you. How I’ve missed this. Deep in the embrace she shared with those petals of fire. Deep against her soul. Under the roar of the endless blossoms.

“I love you, mom.”

I will always be with you. Never forget who you are. You are no monster. You… are my beloved daughter. You are my…

10.52
Soulfire Blossom.

10.53

Oh, Blight. I could never let you go. Soul laid her head atop Blight’s head. Under this cover of her own wings, where none could see them. Together. Alone. Like the old days. With nothing around to worry about. It’s like we are back to our own little duo. A duo I’m more than happy to go back to. You will always stay that same pony that I grew to look up to. How smart and caring you are, hiding just how frail and scared you also are. You’re just like me. You always were the friend I wanted.

Never let me go.

Your hug is so lovely and brings back memories. I want to always remember them. The first time you ever hugged me, even if it was cold, was the most beautiful moment of my life. Now… we can go together, and I’ll never let you go. As long as I can always feel your gentle touch. Your soft fur. Your warmth there… to ease me. Like right now. Let’s forget it all. Holding each other forever. Blight, …you’re so warm. I love it. You’re…

Warm?

She didn’t need to open her eyes to feel something rise over her. Tall and majestic. To blot out the red Sun. The feel of something so… beautiful taking to the air. She heard Blight’s little breath under her. A small whisper. Soul’s ears perked. “Mommy…”

Blight?

The world unveiled. Covered in the light of dark red. There was no Sun. No sky. To open her eyes, looking out to a world shrouded in the sea of a thousand feathers. For they were wings that rose tall over her. Twins of red light. To look upon those wings and making Soul gasp. Looking upon… her own wings of magenta. They came over her. Covering Soul’s wings. Pulling her close. A shield to this world. Where the tiniest wisps of wind found their way through the thick layers of feathers and soothed her as much as such soft wings could. Such beautiful wings. Thick of feathers, slim spans. Great wings unlike any I’ve ever seen. Why? What is this?

What have I woken to?

But this was no nightmare. Not when… I’m being held like this. Held by this pony, and Soul found the strength to look down upon her. Leaning back, that pony did the same… to look up to her. Black lightning streaked. Soul almost jumped. The lightning zipped over her own fur and on to the pony who held her. It didn’t even hurt. Still stunning to see such a thing, …then the many other bolts dancing over magenta fur. The magenta fur of a pony who looked up to her.

Impossible. Yet it was real.

She looked upon this pony, not greeted by the slit eyes of dragons… but by twin orbs of sunlight. Beauty and grace. A calm unlike any other in them. Covered by the long strands of silver hair brimming deep in starlight. Like the ponytail draped down along the pony’s back held by such a large, bright orange bow that bloomed from her mane. Such a truly beautiful sight to be greeted by. Something so impossible. The black pony who faded like smoke, gone. Forever.

Like looking into a mirror. Is that… me? The pony even blinked softly with a smile, like she knew. Knew things were not right. She said nothing. Her dark fur gone, cleaned away. Nothing left but the black mist coursing around her. The black mist? …The sweet smile. It can’t be. But… Soul glanced when she felt those pair of wings gently run over sides. Looking upon them so close. They caught her eye. Made her heart race. Because…

Those are her wings.

“Blight?”

The pony chuckled under her breath. Smiling sweetly. Like that made the lightning swirling around her go wild. None of it hurt. Even when it touched upon Soul’s flesh, as if it only went through her. It captivated her. Mesmerizing. Such an unreal moment. Calming. Here… face to face… with the pony that was once Soulblight.

10.54
The pony let go. Those wings slowly freeing Soul from their grip. Her magenta hooves came down, and she stood with Soul. So much smaller than me. Such a short Pegasus. She looks smaller than before. But this was her. Every motion she made, every soft sound she muttered, was that of Soulblight. Such a small giggle as she looked down upon the lightning swirling across her own hoof. Blight twirled her hoof, making the darkness dance. Dance and seep down into the earth below her. Rising. Such power. Soul felt her fur stand up.

A chill over her… from the most gentle voice.

“You no longer need to worry” Blight said. Closing her eyes. She sighed. Soul heard something strike the dirt behind her, making her look. Her eyes widened. From the plumes of black mist that disappeared before her eyes, they left two ponies there. Running their hooves over their heads. Just as shocked as Soul was to see them here. Pinkie and Rarity. Safe and sound.

“Oh my Celestia! What just happened?” Rarity frantically cried. I don’t know. “I was falling and…”

“No need to fear” Soulblight said. Silencing everypony. “I’d never want Soul’s friends to be harmed.” She held her hoof to her chest. Glancing over to the rainbow maned pony laying across the ground. She found a way to smile even when looking upon Dash and the blood that soaked her. “Or… my friends.” Blight? Did you just say…?

The magenta pony rose her wings once more. The wind howled. Such a massive gust of wind all from those wings. That flap they made sent all the darkness to scatter. Joining with the sky. Disappearing. Soul fell back onto her butt. Shielding from the wind. As short as it lasted. There was no need to fear that wind. There was nothing left to be afraid of. Something made it all calm, all perfect. In this world of red, under the shadow of a dark city, Soulblight was there… and she was what made this terror disappear. All the fear. All the pain. It’s gone. Gone when I see just how beautiful Blight is. Her magenta body glowed. Soulblight took flight. A ray of light upon them all, carried by those great wings. That red Sun glowed behind her… and the light caressed them all.

Somepony coughed. A voice so familiar. There was no pain. No suffering or agony. I can feel it in the air. It’s making my wings twitch. Blight, …you did something… incredible. It was what made Soul smile when she looked upon the cyan pony set hoof upon the mountaintop once more. A rainbow mane that flowed so beautifully in the wind. Flowing over the wings she rose over herself as Rainbow Dash stretched them… and she laughed. Laughed when she looked back and saw her wings. The joy in the air, and Soul couldn’t stop from smiling… at seeing herself surrounded by the ponies who once lay upon the soil. Blood rid away forever. No more pained cries or fear. The princesses walked, stretching their legs. Twilight tapped a hoof to the top of her head. Not able to stop herself from crying to find a horn at home once again. There could be no way to truly know just how happy they all were… but the tears did not stop with Twilight, and even Soul shed a little tear, looking up to the pony who darkened the sky in her wings.

“They were always with us. …She was always with us.” What Blight said made Soul cock her head. Is she talking to me? She was not.

It made Soul shiver seeing those might wings fly over her. Soulblight soaring through the air, her elegant flight… like the grace of which she set down so gently upon the mountaintop. Right behind where Soul looked over her shoulder to find the pony was staring, not at her, but at the other pony who wore a coat of magenta. The Soulblight with the four wings. Neither of them could turn away. Entranced. With everypony there to watch them. The lovely wind blowing over them all. Sending Blight’s mane flying. Coursing and circling in entwined, silver hairs. Falling back down upon her chest. Swaying away… like the clouds that uncovered the sun beneath them as fire burned bright from the pony’s mane.

The tiniest thing. So small and hidden. Something Soul had never seen before. Something never to be seen before now by anypony. Beauty itself upon the gorgeous mane of a pony like Soulblight. A light that could never shine in the darkness that had once been her fur; and when she walked, it shimmered under the sunlight. Exposed to the world. A blossom that matched the sun itself Hanging onto the side of her mane, like a gem along her neck. No way to tell how she got that, only that Soul could not look away. Its beauty. It’s… it’s just like the ones I gave her before. She kept one this whole time… or did she always have that?

“Impossible.”

The other Soulblight stared upon that flower with eyes that watered. Jewels that lit upon her face. Her pupils narrowed… and tears bled out from them. She could do nothing. Nothing to stop Soulblight from walking to her. Thunderous lightning coursing around her hooves where she trotted. But she stopped. For they stood face to face. Soul stepped up, next to Rainbow Dash. The others. Looking upon this sight.

Two Soulblights together. One of feathered wings. One of sharp wings of darkness. Staring upon the other, golden orbs looking into fiery eyes of a dragon. Yet… they both cried, and only that Soulblight who Soul truly did know was the one who smiled. Smiled… and she laid a hoof upon the four-winged pony’s shoulder. Wrapping it around her neck.

“She came back?” That dark Soulblight bowed her head. Tears falling to the ground and… she whimpered. In a moment of weakness unlike any other before. Where this creature who acted like a monster… could truly become a pony.

10.55
“Everything will be okay” the other Blight said, opening her feathery wings to the pony she held. Taking a step closer to her crying twin. But Blight began to sob as well. Sob and smile. “She never left. And… she will always love us. And as long as we remember that…” Blight reached her other hoof out, grabbing the pony. Holding her tight. Blight hugged the dark pony. Making the pony’s hind legs shake and give, sitting down and falling into Blight’s chest to cry against her fur. Protected inside of those beautiful, magenta wings. The only moment where this once horrific pony became… innocent. Changing into something else. Something that was not scary or fearful. No, and Soul felt her heart leap. Leap when she saw it under Blight’s wings.

That once deadly pony… smiled sweetly.

“Hush now, the loneliness is over” Blight whispered down to her. Gently stroking her hoof over her back and making the pony fold her four massive wings. Making her stop shaking. A soft breath. “We’ll never be alone again. We have… a family.”

“Mom… you never left us. You gave me back the flower after all this time” the dark Soulblight whispered. “After all I did, I still mean something to you. Enough to remind me of the times we once had. You never did abandon us.” She laid the side of her head against Blight’s chest. Sighing and closing her eyes.

“I love you, mom.”

10.56
The pony faded into dust.

10.57
Soulblight opened her hooves once more, freeing the dust from her. Blown away into the wind where the magenta pony watched it. Watched it all dance into the sky over the land. Fading into twinkling light. And Soul could still hear it… the soft cries of a happy pony.

Soulblight stared down at one of her hooves. Smiling. Shining bright like the starlight across her mane and tail. Shimmering along the silver locks and into her eyes… freed of the grief that had always been in them. “And she loves us too” she spoke to her hoof. Turning back to finally look upon everypony else. A truly happy pony.

Blight, …you’re finally happy.

10.58
Soul felt it may be Rainbow Dash who stepped up beside her. Side by side looking out at the lone pony who stood out at the edge of the cliff, staring over the darkened towers across the land. “Is this… really the same pony you came here with? That’s the pony that I danced with at the party?” Dash whispered.

The world she stared out at was dark, forboding. A world of pain and fear. Yet Blight was now the one who shone bright over it all. The most radiant of starlight that sparkled across her silver mane that softly blew in the breeze. A scrawny, little thing… so different from the shadow she once was. Such a change. And I have no idea how it came to be, but I like it. I can tell. It’s on Blight’s face. She is able to smile. Whatever happened to her, she’s happy. A cloud of fear torn away from her. To become something so beautiful. I can’t stop from feeling proud of her. I think… something really did change for her. She is back. Even if she looks different. “That is my Soulblight. The pony who raised me.”

She could sense Dash shaking her head. “You sure found a weird one. But… hey, she’s cool in my book. And I’m thinking she’s turned a new leaf now. She really is your splitting image.”

Heh, yeah… I think she’s just like me. In more ways than one. I’m so glad to see her smile. Blight, you have no idea how long I’ve waited to see you happy. I feel we can be happy together now.

Together.

Blight was the one who raised a hoof. Presenting it to Soul. The dust settled around the pony, like the lightning that died out around her. A hoof offered and Soul accepted. Not afraid anymore to walk across the mountaintop. Only her to stand next to Soulblight at the edge of the cliff, and set a hoof upon Blight’s hoof. As we are brought together. Finally. Like no other time before. I know for certain that you and I will never be apart. And you have nothing left to fear. Nothing more while I’m here. It looked like Blight knew that. Her soft smile. Radiating eyes of the Sun. She looked at peace.

This is my chance to look upon a Soulblight like no other. A pony unlike any other. This pony who I’ve known for so long. You are the most beautiful pony I’ve met. I can’t believe… you are my family. But you are.

10.59
“Soul” Blight whispered in such a soothing voice. The pony pushed Soul’s hoof back down to the ground, keeping her own hoof on top of Soul’s. She stepped closer. Folding her wings. A little tear hanging in her eye. She leaned on Soul. Baring her ears to listen.

“You really do love me? I’m your family?”

That made Soul close her eyes and grin. I can tell… I mean the world to her. Just as she does to me. She really needed a pony like me, just as I needed one like her. Looks like I did it. I really did it.

I made a pony happy.

“You are my beloved big sister” Soul opened her eyes. Just as she opened her wings for Blight. “And I’ll always love you.”

And her heart was warmed, as warm as that magenta fur that Blight now had, when her big sister fell into Soul and hugged her. A little sob down there where Blight cried against Soul’s chest. True happiness. “I really am loved” Blight happily cried.

Now and forever. I’ll never stop loving you. Soul clasped her hooves around Blight’s small body. Holding her close. “I’m here for you.”

10.60
It became like the Sun itself had risen again. Such a bright light, as gold as Blight’s own eyes, that bloomed across the moutaintop. Soul had no idea what to think. How sudden it was. Disorienting. The rays of light that spawned and blinded everypony… everypony except Soul. She could still hear the bewildered chatter of the others behind her. The confusion, though it was short lived… as even Soul could see what it was. I can’t believe it.

It was Soulblight who was the one that shone like a star. A blaze of light from within Soul’s embrace. Something that made Blight shudder for a moment until she calmed herself and rested her head back down. Just as Soul was calm. Calming to see the light glowing… from Blight’s own flanks.

It felt warm. Incredible. Like it’s as warm as I remember it many years ago when I last saw something like this. And now I know… I know that you’ve done something so amazing, Blight. It made her hug the pony tighter. After all these years since I first met you, the moments we shared and the time we’ve spent together. As I watched you grow into this beautiful pony I’m now holding. Just like you watched me grow. Just like you witnessed me achieve this same thing. And now, after all those years, it all was meant to make this happen. The day when you finally discover your talent.

I’m so proud, big sister. Soul let herself be consumed in the light. Sudden and short. The world came back to being. Leaving Soul with the pony whose flanks radiated of light that blazed of gold before softening to darkness. A void as black as night that her flanks both set upon the world around them. Just as the Sun itself began to fade, and the world that this was ever so slowly darkened. The pinpricks of light that dared to flicker across the land could not even come close to how lovely that dark light was that Blight now possessed upon her own body. And Soul could look upon it. Her eyes running down the pony’s slender body and to the two things that now dotted both her flanks.

To Blight’s cutie mark.

10.61
The hearts as red as flame, burning within the blackness of the void.

10.62
I can’t believe what I’m seeing. Soulblight, …your cutie mark. Soul could not look away. As her eyes creeped along that mark scorched across Blight’s flank. Like the flames that they were. Smoldering black and curling in a dance around the three hearts, to cover her entire flanks in darkness. Yet Blight… didn’t seem to care as she so calmly glanced down at those same marks and closed her eyes with a smile and a chuckle. There was something about her that just slowly rid away the shock of everything. For it seems so fitting that she has the same cutie mark… as Soul. For some reason, I’m so proud that she and I have discovered this.

Everything we went through. All the stories we have to tell and the ones that remain to be written. A bond that has been made… and it can never go away. I feel so happy that even our own bodies have that same bond. Soulblight, I’m so proud to have met you.

I can think of no other to share everything with. For that, Soul laid her head down upon Blight’s shoulder. Holding her. Never letting go of this warm and beautiful Pegasus. I don’t know what it was that brought us together, I’m just glad that it all lead to this. The day I also got to see you achieve what you wanted. And for you to be happy. Let’s be in this moment together.

“Blight, …we did it” Soul whispered into her ear. “I feel like we really have made it together. Twelve years. We finally did it.”

She set a hoof between Blight’s wings. Running it slowly up her back. Teary eyes staring off to the darkening world behind Blight. A red Sun dying and a world of pain fading away. As if the others had ceased to exist here. Everything. All that’s left was them. Like it always was.

“You got to watch me grow into the mare I am now. Now… I feel like I got to do the same. Blight, I can’t tell you how much it means to see you like this. To see our nightmare finally end. How I love it. I love seeing you finally happy, my beloved sister.” She sighed. “The same life, the same family, same stories and future. The same cutie mark. You and I really are the same. And I couldn’t ask for any other pony.”

Blight giggled. “You dork. You don’t need to say all that. Hehe… but I love you too. …Maybe now would be a good time to finally let you know something. What our talent is.”

Our talent?! Soul leaned back to look upon the pony. Pure shock, and Blight said it like it was nothing. Didn’t even seem surprised. Just more than happy claim what she was saying. She knows what our talent is? The look on Soul’s face must have said everything. “Yup, I actually remember” Blight said. “From the first day I got it so long ago. It’s coming back to me… just like my mark. And it all makes sense now. No wonder we both got the same mark. We both had such a different life compared to everypony else. Something unique that no other can achieve. For they’ve not been through the story we’ve gone through. A story that has made us who we are. And that is what our marks say about us. I just needed you to reteach me it. Would you like to know our shared talent?”

“Yes.”

The Sun became a mere speck. Blight being the last thing that could be seen inside this dark world. And her smile lit it up. As cheerful as her voice when she proudly said it. “No matter how much we lose or how hurt we are, you and I… we always find our way back to being able to truly love. Our hearts… remain strong. Always. Hehe, I just kinda forgot that for a long time.” Blight lowered her head. “Thank you.”

Was the world gone? Hard to tell. An empty void. Yet the two sisters remained. The only lights to shine in the darkness. Where there should be fear, none could exist. The joy that these long twelve years led to were what made Soul cry in the dark. No matter what we are put through, her and I are still together. We will always have love and ponies in our lives. Whatever happens in the past does not need to hold us down anymore. We are there for each other. Inseperable. For that, I love her so much. Soul didn’t care to wipe her tears. She let them fall upon Blight’s fur when she held her. Embraced under one another’s wings. A shield to the dark that consumed the terrible world that no longer remained. Soul could only utter one word.

“Soulblight.”

“Thank you” Blight whispered once more. “Thank you for helping me remember who I am. For giving me back the happiness I wanted. I got to hear the words I’ve always wanted to hear again, and… they were told to me. The true me. And, thanks to you, I know the true me.”

10.63
“Soul. You asked for my name long ago. And now I can give it. The name my mother gave to me long ago.”

Soulfire Blossom.

…..

10.64
“My word, is she okay!?”

“She’s definitely breathing fine. Might be best to not crowd around her.”

“Shh… she’s waking up.”

Where am I? What is this world now? A veil of darkness and I feel so comfortable. Like laying in a warm and soft bed. Relaxed all across my wings, my body. Yet I still see those eyes of such a sweet pony looking back at me. As if we never did leave from the void of that dark and quiet place. And I hear the voices. They’re familiar. Friendly voices to greet her from a long night’s sleep. Kind of like when I’d wake up to the voice of… of Nimbus. Nimbus and Starry so long ago in a time that felt so unique. And now I know… those times, those happy feelings could certainly come back.

I still wake up to look into the eyes of a pony I love. So many it can be. And I see that gaze. Where I can wake up like I did as a filly to find the black pony waiting for me. A pony unlike any other. I see her smile. A warm greeting. Half expecting to wake up and look upon the pony known as Soulblight. …Her magenta fur.

Soulfire.

She opened her eyes.

10.65
No morning dew to drip upon the soil from which she lie. A cool breeze or the songs of birds. So unlike the world she would expect to wake up to. As her body lost what resembled the comfort of a bed. That was gone. So very gone. Did I ever leave that world? Soul… Soulfire’s thoughts? Her own special world. A dark and dreary place. A nightmare that had faded away. Bringing back a world that reminded her of those horrors. Laying on her back and huddled in her own wings. She looked up to the sky. The big sky that she could fly through once more. Draped in the glow of the rising Sun. The Sun that held still, motionless under the veil of darkness spanning the skies. Clouds that this darkness tried to be, for they were not real clouds. Soul could see what it was they were.

A sky of smoke.

The Sun struggled so hard to peek through patches in that blanket over the land. Woken from her sleep to this world. Soul could only groan and turn over onto her side. Trying to set her hooves upon earth once more… and she turned to find her fur land down across a bed of ash. The ash falling from the sky. A waterfall along the horizon. From where the fires roared. Blazes all over. A world set alight. She was left frozen. The trees and remains of a forest was what she could pick out. This… this is the Everfree forest? There were mountains rising high in the distance. Their snow-capped peaks like the ones Soul knew. Still able to poke out from the smoke. Radiating so beautifully in the glow of the fires. Fires fading and dying the long that Soul stared at them from where she lay on her side.

Is this really…?

“Soul?”

Her ears perked. That voice. That was not Nimbus or Soulblight. It was…

She turned her head and found the rainbow mane hanging down to her from above where Rainbow Dash was there. Blotting out the sky above. Standing over her with a smile on her face. Rainbow. I’m not alone in this place. Even after all that, I still have ponies by my side. In this world, in… in my home. Soul looked over, past where Dash stood over her. Ponyville. Over the distant hills. Under the fog of this smoke. Tiny holes being made within that massive cloud over it all. She could see the tiny dots zooming across the sky, making holes where they went. There were ponies at work under this scene of destruction. It made her wince. I know what this all is.

Ponyville disappeared behind the shining hoof that stepped in front of her. Almost looked like it was golden at first until she saw it was a hoof adorned in gold plate. Standing on all four legs once more. Not a scratch on her white coat, Princess Celestia. …And the others. Luna. Twilight. Pinkie and Rarity. Fluttershy and AJ. They are all here. Standing around the pony who lay there. But Soul took the hoof of none other than Dash. I… I have to get moving. Because something here is not right, and I know what it is. Somepony… isn’t here. Wherever this world really is, if it truly is Equestria, then everything should be back to normal. Right?

Soul still fell into Dash’s hooves. Held inside of her cyan-feathered wings. She hugged the Pegasus back. Just as relieved as Dash must be to be back here. Back in this world where it all started. For everything I know that happened before that nightmare, all of this destruction… Soulblight did this. So this is the result of her fears. The fears she held before Soul had stood before such a beautiful pony that she now looked across the horizon for. I still see her in my eyes. A beautiful Pegasus with the locks of starlit, silver hair. Blazing like a night sky over those sweet eyes of hers. Now she’s not here.

We have left that nightmare. Returned. She must have come back with us.

Soul had to whisper into Dash’s ear. “Where is she? Where is… Soulfire?”

It must have been a name that left Dash lost. She was silent for the longest time. Long enough to make Soul begin to worry. Rainbow let go of Soul, leaning back from her with a puzzled look. The Pegasus glanced past Soul. So confused. She must have realized something because she lifted a hoof.

She pointed to a place behind.

10.66
Soul stepped alone. Climbing over the steep rise of the hill. Her hooves tracked across barren soil of ashen grey. Up to the small patch at the top where the grass could still grow green. Rising above to overlook what was once a great forest. Now shambles as Soul could step tall and see the massive scar scorched across the forest. …But trees still stood tall. Far in the distance. The forest yet lived. As if that was what it was that the Pegasus known as Soulfire was looking out to with a somber look, yet she seemed so calm. A gentle breath, and Soul could get the pony to glance at her as she sat down next to where Soulfire sat. Two magenta pegasi alone with the gaze of the others behind them.

The flames were dying. A silent sight out there that both of them could sit together in silence and look upon in wonder. How the flames danced and swallowed one another until they were no more. Sown deep under the blankets of ash that fell upon them like rain. A land where the Sun struggled to light. No, the flames were all that could shine under the cloud of ash above. Such devastation. Soulfire really went all out.

Was this the right path?

I could never know if things would be different. So much uncertainty. Just like this world was. Impossible to tell what things can turn out to be. One thing was clear. Soul could not be any happier with the result that sat next to her.

Twelve years ago, …if anypony had ever said something like this could happen to me, …how could I ever believe any of this could happen to a pony like me? I thought I was just a normal Pegasus with a talent. To see things nopony else ever could and live a dozen years unlike any other. All the chaos I went through. Ha! I can laugh at it all. The fire and blood. The fears and anger. I’ve seen suffering. Nightmares. Death. Nothing anypony should ever know. And now, I look upon a world that I always knew. Wrapped in fire and smoke. Yet… this is the most calm I’ve ever known.

Cuz how could anypony claim to have met a pony like Soulfire out of all that? Did all of this happen for a reason? Who cares? All that matters is one thing. I have a family. Her name is Soulfire Blossom. Soul looked to that pony.

“What are you thiking about?”

10.67
Soulfire grunted. Smiling at that. Soul actually had to giggle as well. Kinda weird to ask that after all we just went through? Like we’re totally in a normal situation now. She was even able to get Soulfire to shake her head. Never looking away from the annihilated land out there. “Ohhhh… just thinking about what just happened” Soulfire said. “I never expected it to end up like this when I first looked upon the open land this morning. Things are… so different.”

Soul watched out the corner of her eyes. Marveled at how Soulfire lifted her own hoof and looked over it. Just as hard to believe as it was for Soul. Just how much she has changed. Soulfire looked up to the silver bangs dangling before her eyes. Grinning at them. A look in her eyes as if she saw something all too familiar. When she looks upon a body that seemed as real as Soulfire’s own astonishment. No longer a shadow. No fire in her eyes. Soulfire looked like the pony she always was. A Pegasus with the most elegant wings resting upon her sides. Her feathers flickering in the breeze just like the long ponytail down from her head. But one thing about her, something that shone brighter than any other. The thing that Soulfire put a hoof to so she may look upon it. The blossom that dotted her luscious mane. She’s unlike anypony I’ve ever met. But she still is the same. That same pony I fawned over. Looked up to. And now I get to see her achieve what she wanted. All of that… it made Soulfire one thing.

“You truly have become one beautiful pony. It’s like there’s a light coming from you” Soul said.

She saw Soulfire blush a little. Running her hoof through her mane. Smiling. Not able to look Soul in the eyes. Something that told Soul that Soulfire knew it all to be true. “Everything is so much clearer to me” Soulfire said. “It’s almost impossible to imagine. And it’s so strange.” Her voice was so soft, just as gentle as how she near obsessively combed her mane with her hoof. As if fawning over the beauty she had become. Or in shock over it. “What was it like?” She asked herself. “I think I can kind of remember it. Twelve years ago. When all I saw and knew was the darkness. I can remember how lonesome it was and feared never being able to escape from all the demons that haunted me. Until that darkness… led to you. Led to all of this. I have no idea how long I waited. Plagued by all the memories and fears. Nothing but the worst things that I could feel. How was it all able to lead to this? Why… did I deserve you?”

“Do you want me to answer that?” Soul asked. “Because there might not be a real reason why.”

Soulfire shook her head. “I think I know the answer. I don’t know exactly what it was that led us to one another. But I think what it was had just one reason. We deserved one another. Us two ponies, it was only us who could be there for the other. I thought I had to bring ruin to this world. Destroy everything that could deny me what I wanted. Become that pony that I never wanted to be. And none of it was true. When all I needed was that one pony to truly believe in me. After all I have done…” Soulfire glanced at her. “Somehow, I have a sister who loves me. And you were able to show me just what kind of pony I really am. I’m not that monster that I feared. …I can look and see just what kind of pony I am. I know who I am.” She flicked her mane with a brush of her hoof, caught in the wind. Like a sea of silver. Soul’s eyes sparkled. Soulfire’s mane lighting the world with its flickering starlight. Shining of a diamond, and as all her hair flowed, the Pegasus smiled to the ground and a tear fell.

“I am Soulfire Blossom. I had a mother who raised me as the Pegasus I truly am. These wings that I soar the sky with and a cutie mark that I can finally know. I truly remember what I am. I am no different from any other pony.” The Pegasus sighed. The most heart-warming moment Soul could ask for. She could not look away. In awe to see the pony she had known for so long finally be able to be this way. A pony who could unravel herself. Truly learn to love herself. To forget everything.

I think she can finally be happy.

“I remember who I am. I remember what I can do. As if every memory of mine… is coming back.” Soulfire looked to the sky. Hoof to her heart. Calm in her eyes. In her glow as she reached for the big sky above. Where the ash slowly opened up for her. Sunlight shining down upon the land. “And… I can finally feel free. And it’s all thanks to you.”

10.68
These years have been long. It feels like too much has happened. The world has changed. Life has moved so quick in these slow turns of the years. As much as it has changed, I have also changed. Even if I am still Soul Serenity. Who just went through a story I never thought I could be a part of. To see changes that so few others could ever claim to see and even fewer could learn to appreciate. There was a story to my life from long ago. When everything seemed so much simpler. Could I ever wish for things to go back to how they used to be? As if none of this happened? I think not. Even if it means I could have everything back. Where none of these years of struggle ever happened. Because what is the point of that?

Back then, I wanted to please others so much. Live up to some standard while I sought to be the very best at what I was. But that only held me back. Back from my truest desire. I may be an exceptional Pegasus who has a place in this world to become something great once again. Yet I still look back to that little wish that a certain somepony told me about. Something beyond just being the best and pleasing others because I was so afraid of not fitting in. That something is sitting right next to me on top of this hill.

Nimbus…

You wanted me to have a friend. I could not save you, but… I know I made you proud. Proud by me just being the true me. The Soul Serenity I was always supposed to be. Wherever you are, I hope you are smiling when you see me like this. With a pony by my side. A pony I truly love. All of these ponies. Who are there for me because of who I am. They are my real family. This is the family I always wanted.

“I have a future I can be proud of” Soul whispered.

“What’s that?” She heard Soulfire ask. Making her ears jump. Saying that out loud. Spaced out in the revelation of just what kind of world it was that she was now in. A world where Soul really was at home. Nothing left to fear, and Soul smiled. Just as Soulfire did. Looks like Soulfire already knew what was going on. She felt it too. Surprising Soul when she asked “Do you think I have a place in this world too? Can I truly be accepted back as a pony who may live among others?”

“You should already know the answer to that!”

10.69
The pony who said that suddenly landed down between the two pegasi. It was Rainbow Dash, whose wings closed on her. The wings that Soul had heard coming and surprised her to the fact that Dashie actually wanted to come over after all that happened. Even more so with what it was she had said. Something told Soul that she already knew the answer. Already knew what Dash was talking about and that is what made her raise an eyebrow. That answer seemed to not hit Soulfire. The Pegasus looked kind of nervous with Dash so close, even more so with how confused she was. Expectantly looking to Dash for an answer. She was dumbstruck. It made Soul giggle.

“Really, Soulfire? You don’t get it?” Soul asked of her. That Pegasus looked shocked about it. Soulfire even pointed a hoof to herself.

“You really think I will be allowed after all I’ve done? I mean, you’ve all seen just what I can be. What I can do. I find it hard to believe you could accept somepony like me here.” And yet you aren’t running away and certainly aren’t acting the way you were before. Something told Soul that Soulfire was actually really hopeful inside. As am I. I know that that pony who scared me is not the same pony that you are. You have shown me just how beautiful and loving you can be, and I know that you are a pony who deserves everything that all other ponies can get. You may have had such a long and troubled life, but that doesn’t keep you away from what you want. I won’t allow it. And I think that all the others will feel the same way.

“Even after I… I tore off your wings?” Soulfire asked. “I almost destroyed everything you loved. Why would you of all ponies want me?” Rainbow Dash didn’t answer. She eyed Soul. A little nod of approval. My sister needs to finally see just what it is that she is. She is a true pony. I promise her. Everything will be alright. She will listen. Soul looked over to all the other ponies back there. Tilting her head for them to come over. They all know what to do. She saw Twilight nod to her.

“It’s not the first time I’ve been without my wings” Rainbow said. “…Look.” Rainbow turned herself to face Soulfire. Even if she couldn’t get the magenta Pegasus to turn to her, she did not let that stop her. Her determination, it was real. It made Soul smile. “I don’t know what it was that exactly led to all this and I don’t care. What matters to me is what I’ve seen of the real you.” Soulfire’s ears flicked up.

“You were Soulblight, right?”

Soulfire nodded.

“So you’re the same pony who Soul said protected her and kept her company in the twelve years she was gone. You did for her what I wasn’t even able to do. What I failed to do. Not many ponies would do that. And I’m still so grateful. I can’t stay upset with you. You’re the reason I got to see her again. You were strong where I was weak. To be honest, I… I really don’t want you to go. I don’t and I’m so sorry that I didn’t believe in you. I guess we were all being tested.” Rainbow ran her hoof along her leg. She was right. All of this, we’ve all come out of it changed. Soulfire’s eyes were alight in the glow of the dying fires in the distance. A sight she didn’t look away from. Even when she spoke. “Soul always spoke so highly of you. I always wanted to have friends who can love me for who I am. The way she talked about you always did make you out like you were some sort of wonder mare who would like me and actually want somepony like me in their life.”

“I’m not a wonder mare…” Dash grinned and blushed. “But I am pretty awesome.”

“Do you really forgive me? Could I really be your friend?” Soulfire asked.

A long pause swept across the land. There was no worry. It was all calm. Soul sat with the two. All three pegasi left to stare out upon a land of smoldering cinders and windswept ash. Where the Sun struggled to peek through the veil of darkness and shine its light over the land once more. Where the mountains could reach out over the clouds of ash. Silhouetted in the light of day. As if the light slowly pushed away the destruction. Cleaning the world of the evidence of what happened here. We are all here together on the edge of the annihilation that led to what we all are now. We are what I’ve always wanted us three to be. What I hoped for. It is finally here. Soul didn’t even need to hold her breath to see what would come. As her dream came true.

“You real name is Soulfire” Rainbow pointed out. “And you’re Soul’s sister?”

“Her big sister” Soulfire agreed. Enough to warm the heart.

“Then you’re the exact same pony that I met at the party. I can’t see any reason why we can’t be friends. I would love it… but as long as I get to dance with you again. I’d really like that.”

Soulfire smiled deeply.

10.70
“The same goes for us.” A familiar voice made Soulfire widen her eyes. Finding herself and Soul surrounded by everypony, and Soul slacked her shoulders. More than satisfied to hear it. Now that Soulfire will know the truth. Exactly what Soul believed would become true. Now that they all see who you are. Twilight was more than happy to set a hoof on Soulfire’s shoulder and say “I was wrong, we all were. And I hope we can all be friends. Maybe I just let my fear get the better of me and not see that you were a pony who belongs. I won’t make that mistake again.” “We all won’t” Applejack said. Joined by all the others. So many ponies who Soul could see were now what Rainbow Dash had said they would be. Not just to me but to Soulfire as well. Pinkie, Fluttershy, Rarity, Twilight, Applejack. Our friends. That was what got Soulfire to do it, to finally turn her head away from the ashen landscape. To look upon the ponies who accepted her. Lowering her wings, lowering any guard she had. No longer that scared, little pony. That’s right, you belong here with us. I hope you see.

Soul glanced to the two ponies who stood behind the others. Standing tall, where Soulfire also rose up to face them. In a moment where no more fighting could exist. No more pain or blood. Between the ponies who had fought here. Twilight and the others stood aside so the three ponies could be together. Where Soulfire stood before Celestia and Luna. In this place where Soulfire had inflicted such pain, she didn’t show any remorse or doubt. The most confident I’ve seen her in a while. And it took all this to do it. So now I get to watch my sister, the pony who had been so afraid of everypony here, stand with them all now and face the princesses. Not as a threat. Nopony was a threat. That made Soul stand up too. Walking over to stand with her older sister. So she could hear Soulfire let go of all fear.

“I apologize for everything I’ve done. I will never fool myself again. I will never become that pony again. May I ask for your forgiveness and be allowed to stay with my sister?”

Your sister. Soul felt tears in her eyes. Hearing that. Soulfire saying I’m her sister to the princesses. To everypony. Like we’re admitting to the world. I could not ask for anypony else to be my family… and the others know that too. Soul stood by her side. Two magenta pegasi. Sisters. Under the eyes of the two princesses.

Whatever fighting had happened here. The hatred and gruesome lies that had driven it. What created such annihilation over the land and led to all that lay fresh in Soul’s mind. In the minds of everypony, and how quick it transformed. Like the darkness did when it created this gorgeous pony who bowed her head to the princesses. How everything changed. And Soul’s ears rose tall when she watched a gold-plated hoof touch down onto Soulfire’s head and Princess Celestia leaned over her, …smiling.

“I will not make the same mistake I did twelve years ago. Today, I will listen. Listen to a pony who needs my help. Who needs all of our help. I will not abandon you. So… I see no problem in letting you live with the ponies who care for you. I accept your apology.”

Soulfire smiled to the ground with clenched eyes. A tear freeing itself and running down her cheek. Just like one did with Soul. We can be together. We really can! Soul locked eyes with the princess. Both smiled at one another. “I have no right to separate two sisters from one another. Not when you both deserve to have a life together.”

“Does that mean…?” Soul held her mouth agape.

Celestia nodded. “Welcome home, Soul Serenity. To you and your sister, Soulfire.”

10.71
Soul hugged her sister. Listening to Soulfire crying, she’s making me cry. After everything. All that we went through. Twelve years together in the snow. In the icy cold. A tomb that took us from a life we wanted. Fighting so hard. Surviving every day and struggling to make it to the next. Becoming strong together. You put me through hard times just as much as I did to you and we made it out together, always together. Because you and I are together. Forever. My sister. My family. Soul sunk her head into Soulfire’s mane. Holding her tight. As the wind brushed over them both. Ash flying. Mixing with the leaves fluttering across the land. Into the sky that lay open for them both. As big as the world that was now open to them.

Twelve years away from it all. Finally, we are back. Me with my sister, who was once Soulblight. You are Soulfire Blossom, the family I never had. And I’m proud to spend my life with you. I really am.

Soul looked over Soulfire’s shoulder. “Thank you” she whispered to the princess. Celestia did not lie about any of it. She was happy. The happiest I’ve ever seen her. She had a smile I’ve not seen since I was a child. And now… I am able to see Celestia accept me back, but Luna as well. Finally seeing the youngest sister. The youngest just like I am. To see her also… happy. Through everything I’ve ever known of her, I’ve not known her to be happy. And here we are, I truly am home. Back in a world I’ve dreamed of. A world I love. A world without the fears of the past. As it was all ripped away. I’m no longer sad. I’m happy. Happy for myself. Happy for my sister.

“I finally can have a home” Soulfire whispered.

As the dust settled. The fires all died off. Calm across the land.

10.72
This is our home. This ashen-swept landscape running across the world. Up to the mountains where a great castle stood tall over everything. Its shadow over the town at the edge of what was once a forest. And somewhere out in those skies, the great city of Cloudsdale was here. Over the countless other towns and villages across this land. This home. A home I once longed for. Now… I’m here. I am back to the home that Nimbus and Starry wanted for me. Soul held her sister closer. Both of them sitting together to look out at it all. It’s crazy that it’s been twelve years. Twelve and all of this happened. So many times, I didn’t think I’d see this again. Wondered if I had a place here. Yet I do. This really is my home. Under the silent winds and the crisp, blue sky that the rising Sun lit. This sky that I once flew through. Over the rivers and fields that I could look down upon when I was just a filly who could watch the world from her home in the clouds. I didn’t know if I’d have anything when I could one day fly upon that world. I was a crazy filly.

Soul hugged her wing tightly over Soulfire. Smiling with her at the land. Her other wing pulled Rainbow Dash closer. All three of them, and Soul sat between the two ponies who changed it all. Who changed my hopes.

I am free. And I am here… with a family of my own. Two ponies who love me, and I love them. Everything is different. My life feels complete, and I’m free to do everything that I’ve wanted. One day… “One day, I want to fly for all of Equestria. And show the world just what a pony can do, no matter how hard things can be. Would you two like to join me on that day?”

Dash giggled under her breath. Sitting her cheek against Soul’s cheek. Whispering. “I’d love to.” With a sudden jolt that made the fur on Soul’s back stand as something soft touched Soul’s cheek. A little tap when Dash gave a gentle kiss. Soul sighed. Like everything is back to normal.

“I really have a home now” Soulfire said. “…There’s no other place I’d feel more inclined to fly for. When the day comes, I’ll fly with you again, sister.”

Soul saw it in the corner of her eyes but couldn’t even react. Not before she felt Soulfire’s own lips tickle her cheek fur. Such a quick kiss. It made Soul stare at the pony when Soulfire reeled back in Soul’s wings, looking down at the ground. “That… was for earlier.” Soulfire blushed. Is she actually embarrassed? Soul glanced to Dash, both of them chuckling. That didn’t even phase Soulfire. The beautiful Pegasus seemed to wave off what she just did. Even though the meaning was forever left in Soul’s mind. My sister loves me. Just like I love her. Oh, come here you dork. Soul brought her wing in, not letting Soulfire go from her. I’m with my two favorite ponies, so let’s stay like this.

“I want us to be like this forever” Soul told them both.

Forever.

10.73
“You know…” Dash started. “I really wouldn’t mind all of us being together at the house from now on. I got plenty of space and all.”

“Would it really be alright for me to stay there?” Soulfire asked. Such a stupid question. Dash thought so too. “Duh! You aren’t getting away from Soul and me. You can have the guest bedroom. Just make yourself at home. This is your home too” Rainbow cocked her brow at Soul with a sly grin. What? Oh… Soul understood. Giving her that same grin. Looks like I will be sharing a bed from now on with a certain somepony. Soul ran her hoof along Dash’s back. “I wouldn’t want it any other way” Soul admitted.

So it is. In the end, I really am together with her. With all of them. Soul finding herself surrounded by the ponies now in her life. She downed her wings. Soulfire hugged her. Dash did too. Twilight, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie.

They’ve all accepted me back. They all love me just as much as I love them. Making Soul laugh. As she heard the last wishes of Nimbus in her ears. Anything can come true. Now I see. I see the truth. Thank you, from wherever you two are watching me. Thank you Soulfire. Rainbow. Everypony. Because of you all…

The sky is the limit.

…..

10.74
“Perhaps we should get to cleaning all this up?”

Princess Luna looked to her sister. Scoffing. All the ash and cinders that smoldered across the land. I wonder why I’m not so excited to clean that. She gave Celestia quite the unhappy look. The white alicorn seemed to get it. Sighing in submission.

“We will. But not right now. I’d like to get some sleep first. After all we went through. I think we need it.” It was true, she could barely feel her wings. Nearly impossible to keep her eyes open and listening to her stomach rumble. But… one thing first. “Yet there is still something on my mind” Luna said.

The dark-furred alicorn turned to the magenta Pegasus next to her. Soulfire Blossom. She looked up to the princess. Listening. Waiting for what she was called over for. For the questions Luna had. Those questions were… “Can you tell me… what happened to Nimbus Swiftshot and Starry Veil? And do you know why it happened?”

A long pause. Soulfire looked away. Into the sky. Her wings twitched.

“I can tell you what happened.” Her blazing yellow eyes glanced back.

“But I have no idea why it happened.”

…..
One last stroke. The paint still wet. All across the canvas that I stare upon. Yet it is a gorgeous result. To think such hardship I had in making it so… could finally lead to something beautiful. Hmm, I impress myself sometimes. How easy it can be to witness as fate’s strings are tugged ever so slightly. Yet the slightest stroke of a brush can make such a massive impact. Striking! I smile because of it. Grinning with the brush held between my teeth. Another piece to add to the collection. Another story upon countless others. And with that… I end this ballad upon the canvas.

My teeth find their way through the brush till two pieces fall broken at my golden hooves. Yet another brush comes forth. Sitting there before my eyes. Enticing me. As I know what it seeks. It’s exactly as I seek. A new brush for a new song. A dazzling spectacle upon the sheet.

I see. I see what you mean. I nod to this prospective brush. So full of life and eager. Like I should be. Everything went so well. So, why not?

The brush came closer. Making me laugh under my breath. Soon I can finally do what I’ve wanted. With every means to do it. Soon, as I look up into the ashen sky overlooking this vast land of Equestria.

I can make everything up to you as I paint… your story.