Chapters "Tia?" a voice whispered softly. "Auntie Tia, you can't do this. You can't just disinherit us from our birthrights. It's not your decision!"
"Silence, Cadence," Celestia said forcefully. "I have untold powers. I am immortal. You cannot stop me!"
"I am immortal as well, Tia," Cadence argued. "My powers show me that you have lost all of your love for your subjects. What happened, Tia?"
A cold laugh rang through the corridor, and a little purple princess flattened herself further against the wall as a fierce shiver ran through her body.
"Nothing, Cadence," Celestia replied coldly. "I simply allowed the many magical barriers I placed around myself to fall. I called you here first, Cadence, because you will be the first to go."
A shriek of immense pain filled the hallways, and the hidden princess tried to cover her ears while keeping the tears from falling for her old foalsitter. With a blast of light and a bang, the cries were cut off.
"Where has she gone, Princess?" the rough voice of a Royal Guard asked.
"In the castle dungeons. Her wings and powers have been stripped, and I will deal with her soon enough," Celestia said coldly. "I will have to wait for Luna to return to the castle, but I will settle for dealing with Twilight Sparkle next. Find her."
Twilight ran for her life, the cold marble of the castle flying beneath her feet. It was not enough for the princess, who stumbled and fell forward, right into the waiting grasp of the royal guards.
***
"You called for me, sister?" the night princess asked, trotting forward.
"Luna, what do you see here?" Celestia asked, pointing a hoof out of the window closest to herself. The younger sister stepped forward, looking outward.
"We see only the magical forests of Equestria, sister," Luna responded, quizzical. "Is there something thou wishes to reveal to us?"
Celestia said nothing, instead guiding Luna to the opposite window.
"Look now, sister," Celestia demanded.
Luna gazed out the window and skittered back, horrified at the sight before her. Below, on the ground, a gallows had been constructed, and the dead body of Princess Cadence hung from the noose, wingless, mournfully staring blankly at the pathway before her.
"Tia," Luna said, her voice high. "Why in Faust's good name would thou execute our beloved niece!"
"To show an example," Celestia answered curtly. "I bring you here today, Luna, because I am giving you a choice. Equestria has transformed into Celestial Equestria, but I have set aside a portion of the land for you to govern over. You may choose to fulfill this role, or you may join Cadence in front of my palace."
"Twilight," Luna managed to say. "What has thou done with thy student, Twilight Sparkle?"
Celestia chuckled. "In due time, Luna. You shall see in due time."
With that, the guards blocked Luna from sight and guided her out of the room.
***
"The Lunar Republic has fallen. I repeat myself, friends; The Lunar Republic has fallen."
"What will this mean for the rebellion, Atticus?"
Rest easy, Spell Tome. The citizens of Canterlot have no need to fear. The rebellion has died with the Republic. Celestial Equestria is safe from the uprising."
"What about the other districts?"
"We shall see what our magnificent and just leader decides, Atticus. What do you think Celestial Equestria deserves?"
"They need to be shown an example."
"Like the execution of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza?"
"No, Spell Tome. Something much worse. Something that will remind them, time and time again, that they are at the mercy of our Queen."
Twilight felt the breath hitch in her throat as Apple Bloom's name rang across the square, loud and clear. The rumble of voices erupted around her as she forced her hooves to move, pulling her out of the section along with Applejack's little sister.
She didn't think about herself. All she could see was Applejack, the strong workpony, broken and grieving over the tiny body of little Apple Bloom...
"No!" she said forcefully, blocking the extremely frightened filly from the stage. "You will not take her. I, Twilight Sparkle, volunteer as tribute!"
Silence fell as everypony stared at her. Shrugging, the Harmonybalancers let go of Apple Bloom and swarmed around Twilight and led her towards the stage.
"Congratulations, dear," Rosella said, nodding her head. "Your volunteer is very much appreciated."
Twilight could not speak. The shock of her decision was overwhelming, crippling, and immensely painful, but it was worth it.
"Twilight!" an uncharacteristically-high-pitched voice screamed. The little purple dragon darted out from under Cheerilee and ran for his 'sister,' only to be brought back, kicking and screaming, by a tearful Big Mac. "Twilight! TWILIGHT!"
Rosella turned back, emotionless, moving to the second bowl and pulling out another name before trotting up to the microphone once more.
"Lucky Clover!" she announced with enthusiasm.
A grey stallion whipped his head around, trying to prove that it wasn't him.
"Lucky Clover?" he said weakly.
"Lucky, dearie, could you please come up to the stage?" Rosella requested, her smile becoming more forced and stiff by the moment.
The stallion slowly migrated through the crowd, mounting the roughly-constructed stage with unwilling legs.
"Congrats to our tributes from the District of New Ponyville, Lucky Clover and Twilight Sparkle! Give them a round of applause!" Rosella called.
The silence was deafening. None of the many eyes of the inhabitants of Ponyville rested upon Lucky, but were instead focused on Twilight.
Twilight gazed at Lucky with tearful eyes. She knew she would have to kill this poor earth pony, but there was nothing she could do about it. It was done.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
"All hail the princess," he responded almost as quietly, bowing his head.
Slowly, Cheerilee, standing in the back with those ineligible for the games, bent her knees forward and rested her forehead on the ground in a sign of deep respect. Slowly, the rest of the crowd followed suit, saluting the former Princess and her sacrifice.
***
"My liege," the commander muttered, "Twilight Sparkle has volunteered to take the young Apple Bloom's place in The Pony Games."
The white queen slowly crossed the floor, in deep contemplation. "This is important information. Leave me; I must have time to process this."
The guardpony bobbed and left the room, shutting the heavy oak doors behind him with a bang.
She had seemed quite calm to the guard, but her pupils widened to the size of plates as she collapsed on her bed and dug her hooves into her mane.
"What have you done!" she shrieked, throwing her crown across the room. It clanged against the wall and clattered to the floor. "What have you done!"
There was something remarkably different between the princess and the queen. The princess had humility and kindness; love and charity. Above all, she loved her family and her student. Only once had the real Celestia shown herself like this, and it was when Cadence had fallen through the trapdoor of the gallows to her death.
Her scream of grief and agony rang through the soundproof room, never escaping, and she tore at her mane, the rainbow gossamer falling to the ground in wisps and dissolving on impact.
Twilight... Twilight... Twilight.
"Get out out of my head!" she suddenly shrieked, pawing at her temples and letting gold droplets of blood fall to the ground as she tried to claw out an unknown being. "Get out!"
Slowly, her irises changed from deep violet to a light, glowing lavender, and she stopped scratching at her head, her hooves falling to the bed sheets.
"Tsk tsk tsk. Careful now, dear. You must have control of yourself," she said calmly. "Let the Games begin, Twilight Sparkle."
***
Rosella nudged the two ponies into the town hall, and the Harmonybalancers shut the door behind them.
"You have ten minutes for each goodbye," Rosella said grimly, her mane dulling and flattening. She shoved each into a different room. and two Harmonybalancers positioned themselves in front of each door.
Twilight collapsed on the sofa in the corner and dug her hooves into her mane, shaking her head.
"What have I done?" she muttered, tears leaking out of her eyes. "It was surely the right thing to do, to save Apple Bloom, but... Spike!"
The little purple dragon had come streaking in, sobbing his head off.
"No, Twilight!" he cried. "You can't leave! Ponyville needs you!"
"I-I know they do," she whispered, kneeling next to Spike and nuzzling him. "That's why I promise I will come back, okay?"
"You have to," he cried, sobbing into her mane. "For us. For all of Equestria. Old Equestria needs its princess, Twilight!"
Twilight said nothing, only hugging him closer to her side.
"For you," he said suddenly, slipping something hard around her neck. Looking down, she couldn't believe her eyes. Her element crown had been destroyed when Celestia had thrown her out, but miraculously, the magical pink star was embedded in the thin gold chain now around her neck.
"Spike," she said in awe, "How did you get it?"
"I've been hiding the gemstone for ages," he said sheepishly, the tears pouring down his face. "The magical stone fell towards me when Celestia smashed the crown, and I kept it for you. It was really hard to not eat it-" Twilight let out a giggle at this- "but I had it put into the necklace for your token. It may or may not have the elemental magic still contained in it, but at least it will bring you sentiment and luck."
"Thank you, Spikey," Twilight said tearfully as the doors opened. "I love you, my number one assistant."
"Twilight!" he yelled as the Harmonybalancer unicorn yanked him out of the room and slammed the door.
Twilight looked down and stared into the gemstone, watching her face refract over the surface.
She looked up, surprised, when the door opened again, and before her stood the Apple Family, minus their older sister, who had been taken to the District of New Appleoosa.
"Twilight!" cried the little filly who she had saved. "Twilight, you saved mah life!"
Big Mac shook his head, bowing his head to the unicorn.
"Eeyup," he agreed. "Twilight, you saved mah sister at what may be the cost of your own life, and we are mighty grateful. If Granny was still here with us, she would surely thank you with all of her heart."
Little Apple Bloom wouldn't let go of Twilght when it was time to go, and the extremely sad unicorn had to pry the little filly off her legs with magic and send her screaming out of the room.
"Take care of her, Big Mac!" Twilight called. "For Applejack."
The Harmonybalancers ushered Twilight and Lucky out of the building and into a carriage, locking the doors shut as Rosella joined them.
Rosella was one of the Canterlotians who didn't spend herself on garish clothing. Her naturally red and green mane hung loose around her shoulders, her dress was simple for Canterlot standards, and she wore no makeup, due to the natural sheen of her mint green crystal coat. She sullenly stared forward, not speaking to either pony until they had reached the train station.
"I hope you do well, ponies," she said finally. "I have faith in New Ponyville this year. Follow me; I wish to share something with you."
Her happy, bubbly, carefree façade had vanished. In its place, a serious, brooding, and intelligent mare had taken her place.
Lucky and Twilight exchanged a glance before following the sparkling pony, Harmonybalancers at their backs.
The bullet train was nothing at all like the now-normal two-day train to Canterlot. Reserved only for Tributes, it was meant to make the trip fast and efficient, cutting travel time by half. It was an overnight trip, due to weaving in and out of the barriers put up around the country to prevent unauthorized District travel.
The doors slid open, and Rosella led the ponies into a beautiful waiting room, reminiscent to the style of the Royal Palace. Twilight was sucked into old memories, frozen where she stood, as Lucky oohed and ahhed over the decorations.
"Is it always like this?" he asked Rosella, who had grabbed a crystalline bottle from the bar in the back and poured herself a glass of red wine.
"The furnishings? Yes, dear, Canterlot looks entirely like this. It has a certain charm, wouldn't you agree?" she asked quietly.
"Certainly," Lucky answered in awe. "Twilight, you have to see this!"
Twilight snapped out of her visions and gave a confused look to Lucky. Why was he being so kind to her? They were just going to end up killing each other, but he was being as friendly to her as if they were just going on a nice vacation, during the Era of Old Equestria.
The mare trotted over to Lucky's position at the window, and she stared outside. The world was passing around her in a blur, but it was a beautiful myriad of colors, like a paintbrush streaking pigment across a blank canvas. Conifers and brush swept past them at remarkable speeds, and Twilight realized that they must be going extremely fast.
"How does it move?" she found herself asking.
"It's magnetic. The train is floating, really, and there are heavy magnets that are pushing it along the track," Rosella answered. "Magnificent, isn't it?"
Twilight glanced around the room, searching for something in particular. A little of the comfort of home.
"Does this train have any books?" she asked nervously, itching for the feel of parchment floating above her eyes.
Rosella chuckled.
"In due time, my little pony," she answered. "I want a word with you two first."
Lucky and Twilight slid into the two armchairs sitting opposite the crystal pony and waited for her to speak.
"As well as being your escort, I am your mentor," Rosella said carefully, sipping at her glass. "Do you know what that means?"
"You're our trainer, then, right?" Lucky asked.
"Quite correct. I learned to fight myself a very long time ago, and I have plenty of advice to give you if you pay attention," she said, looking pointedly at Twilight, who had been caught in a daydream.
"Sorry," the unicorn apologized, blushing. "I'm just not sure I need the help, Rosella. My books have given me a lot of information, and I'm quite handy with spells."
"There are restrictions, Twilight, to what you can do in the arena," Rosella said, frowning. "They put a magical barrier on unicorns and pegasi so the unicorns can use only non-fatal spells and cannot use healing spells, and pegasi can fly only to ten feet. It's to make it fair to the earth ponies, like myself and Lucky."
At this, Lucky frowned and opened his mouth to protest, but Rosella shot him a glare.
"Don't try and contradict me. I know much about these games, Lucky Clover. Twilight, have you ever been in a situation where your life is in danger simply because of the elements?"
"Well," Twilight started, "no, but-"
"Exactly," Rosella interrupted. "That is my point exactly. I'm here to help you in any way I can, but I do need you to be tolerant. You may have heard of the rumors surrounding myself?"
Lucky and Twilight nodded.
"Many of them are true. I have... a problem, or two, really. I have what is known as multiple personality disorder, and yes, I'm being quite forward about it so that I may help you to the best of my abilities. I've named them Rose and Rosie. What you currently see is a Rosie on the verge of turning to Rose. You saw the bubbly, happy me at the Reaping?"
Twilight nodded again.
"I can pull it out like a mask. That is my natural state, carefree, flirty, happy. Rose comes with pessimism, alcoholism, and sharpness. Do be tolerant with me if this happens; it will pass, and I will be able to teach you all I know as best as I can as either one."
Twilight and Lucky sat in quiet silence, absorbing this new bit of information.
"You may go," Rosella said, waving a hoof. "I want you both to watch all the Reapings from each District to see who your opponents are. We shall speak again in the morning."
Twilight stood, beckoning to the grey stallion in a gesture of friendliness. If he could be civil to her, she would return the favor. They departed the lounge car, trotting off to a room with a very large magical screen. The technology had been introduced with the games, and Celestial Equestria had become suddenly much more tech-forward.
Twilight's horn glowed, and the screen flickered to life, starting to showcase the Reapings in a selective order. Twilight picked one at random, Los Pegasus, and leaned back in the sofa with Lucky.
"McCallum Lily!" announced the extremely overdone mare at the microphone. A beautiful blue unicorn with a smirk on her face mounted the stage, flashing her teeth at the crowd of excited ponies.
Twilight suddenly had a rush of clarity. She had met the mare before, but only one time. Calla had been a student at Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, but the two of them had been great rivals at the time. Calla had amazing magical talents, sometimes greater than those of Twilight herself, but she was always resentful of the fact that she was one year younger than Twilight, and as a result, had been too late to be examined by the Princess as a personal prodigy.
Twilight was now doubting whether she would escape the games alive after all as Calla flashed a confident grin at the camera.
The only other notable tributes were those from Dodge City, a tough pair of pegasi who looked like they had been weight-lifting for years.
As Lucky poked the screen to flip to the Reaping from Cloudsdale, to which Rainbow Dash had been banished, the screen suddenly flickered and died. As hard as they tried, Twilight and Lucky could only get to the screens that showed the tributes from Dodge City, Los Pegasus, Baltimare, Vanhoover, San Palomino, and Tall Tale. Cloudsdale, Trottingham, Appleoosa, Manehatten, and Fillydephia could not be accessed.
"I wonder why?" Lucky asked.
"I guess it's nothing," Twilight answered, shaking it off. "we'll find out when we reach Canterlot, I guess."
Lucky bid Twilight goodnight and disappeared into his room, but the unicorn stayed on the couch, dreading for the time when she would have to re-enter the castle and face Celestia once more.
Twilight groggily slipped into her sheets as the moonlight streamed in through the lace curtains, leaving yellowish beams of light dancing across her fur.
The mare thought deeply about past suspicions when reliving the painful night of her exile. Flashes of red flames in Celestia's eyes and bursts of sparks at the tips of her mane... It wasn't normal. It didn't make any sense. The princess had never, ever, ever had a bad bone in her body, so... What was wrong with her?
Twilight suddenly remembered a night, long ago. Celestia's bedroom was soundproofed to normal ponies to keep audiences private, but the Alicorns had enhanced senses with their magic. She remembered being about to knock on her mentor's door when an almost inaudible, scarily high-pitched scream had emanated from the walls. Too scared to interfere, she had left, and Celestia had seemed just fine the next day... Or had she?
The unicorn did not realize that she had fallen asleep until a strange, yet familiar, feeling prodded at the edges of her unconsciousness. She was sitting in her study in Golden Oaks Library, thinking hard about all of these questions, as a hoof landed on her shoulder.
"Princess Luna!" she cried as she turned and saw the Princess of the Night. "Oh, Faust, you're real, right? It's not just a dream?"
"Of course tis a dream," Luna said gravely, "but that does not make it fake. Twilight Sparkle, tis the first time we have been able to pull our presence together and present ourself to thee as a full shape. For these past three years, we were but a mere presence, unable to speak, see, and feel the other senses."
"I thought Celestia may have killed you..." Twilight said quietly, still not believing what was before her.
Luna chuckled a bit.
"Thou thought she had destroyed us. Thou has much to learn about true immortality, Twilight Sparkle. Our beloved niece, may she rest in peace, was not of full royal blood. That is why she was able to be killed. We, the two sisters, are fully immortal. We cannot be killed in the sense of death you think of. We can be pulled apart, our essence scattered across Equestria, as I was, but we cannot be destroyed. Thou once possessed this gift, before thy powers were stripped of thee, for your gift was a full immortality. Have no fear, Twilight Sparkle; we will find a way to bring Celestia back."
"Bring Celestia back?" Twilight asked, confused. "What do you mean?"
Luna's expression darkened.
"Thou remembers the time thou defeated the evil spirit inhabiting my soul, Nightmare Moon?" she asked.
"Of course," Twilight responded. "I don't see how that... Oh. I see what you're thinking."
"Our theory may be completely wrong, of course," Luna said quickly, "but it's always good to have hope, is it not?"
Twilight nodded, but her dream suddenly became blurry.
"Twilight! Twi..."
"We must depart, Twilight Sparkle," Luna said, fading. "We hope to see thee survive the Pony Games. Beware: Extremely difficult friendship choices must be made. We hope thee will pick the right ones."
Twilight's eyes snapped open as Rosella shook her awake.
"We're here, darling," Rose said irritably. "You slept though our discussion of the videos. Get cleaned up; Canterlot is ready to greet you."
***
The cheering of the crowds as Lucky and Twilight stepped off the train drowned out any attempt at speech. The two followed Rosella along the pathway to the Training Center, a large section of the Castle Twilight realized was the wing she and Luna shared when they had inhabited its halls.
Lucky nudged Twilight, pointing with his eyes to the chariot pulling up to the doors.
"I bet those are more tributes," he whispered.
Twilight watched carefully, but they were too far away to see anypony. Her heart stopped for a moment when a flash of bright pink appeared, but the pony was gone before Twilight could tell who she was.
As they entered, Twilight glanced around the hallway, remembering the statue that had rested there, or the painting that had hung here.
"This must be extremely hard for you," Lucky said quietly.
"It looks completely different," Twilight responded. Lucky was the only pony so far who had seemed to remember who she had been, and it made the mare warm to him. "The hallways are darker. Unfamiliar. It's not so hard."
"You'll be off to meet your stylists, now," Rosie said cheerfully, stopping at a sealed room. "I'll meet you two later tonight. This will be so exciting!"
She trotted off, leaving the two alone with the accompanying Harmonybalancers.
Twilight and Lucky glanced at each other before turning to the door.
"See you on the other side," he said quietly.
"Good luck with a good stylist," Twilight said, rolling her eyes. They laughed for a moment, grimacing at the image of a garishly-styled Canterlot pony working on them. Then they turned, stepped through the door, and walked in opposite directions.
***
"Darling, you just look magnificent!" the light blue mare commented in a heavy accent. Her eyes were hidden by a pair of pink-lensed glasses, and her dress was okay for a Canterlotian, striped black and white. "Photo Finish has finished her task. Mmm, yes!"
Twilight had been pampered, polished, and shined, and was now clothed in a glittering dress full of pink and purple sparkles. The dress was full, a gala-style gown, with ribbon sleeves and a neckline.
"I don't see how this has anything to do with New Ponyville," Twilight argued, looking at it from every direction. Outfits for tonight were supposed to be representative of each individual District, showcasing the specialties of each city. Ponyville's was hard to make, being the trading post of Celestial Equestria, but Twilight was certain sparkles had nothing to do with it.
Photo Finish chuckled. "No, darling. It has everything to do with Ponyville. You are the spirit of Ponyville, and it fully represents you, darling. Now, it is time to showcase your beauty! To the ceremony!"
Twilight found herself being bustled out of the room, stuffed into a carriage, and off to the Opening Ceremony. Lucky sat next to her, seeming just as uncomfortable as she was.
"Nice suit," she noted. Lucky was wearing a purple and pink suit in the style of Twilight's gown, and he grimaced as he looked down at his clothes.
"Are you kidding?" he asked, flabbergast. "It's the most hideous thing I've seen in ages. I can't pull off sparkles! What was Photo thinking!"
The blue mare ushered both ponies into their new carriage, holding a hoof to her lips.
"There is a very secret thing that I want to show you," she said. "It will make you the center of attention!"
She pressed something on the back of both outfits, and they were soon surrounded by magic sparks, like miniature shooting stars flying around their carriage.
"Oh my stars," Twilight exclaimed. "Photo Finish, how did you do that! It's magnificent!"
"The secrets of show business," Photo said, nodding. "Now, your district number is Nine, so your chariot will go ninth. Stun them for me, Lucky Clover and Twilight Sparkle!"
The chariots started to move, and Twilight looked around for a moment, trying to catch sight of any other tribute she had missed.
Her heart stopped as the pink mare in front of her turned, and the flat-maned, dull-furred mare looked up. The sapphire blue eyes of Pinkie Pie forlornly locked with Twilight's in surprise and horror.
"Pinkie!" Twilight cried as the chariot pulled away. "No!"
Pinkie Pie. She had been moved to Fillydelphia, one of the towns not shown to her on the train. Fillydelphia. Fillydelphia, Appleoosa, Trottingham, Cloudsadale, Manehatten. Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity.
"Oh my Faust," Twilight cried, realizing what had happened. "My Faust, they're all here. They're all in the games!"
"Twilight," Lucky hissed, "we're going. I don't know what you're so upset about, but we're about to face thousands of Canterlotians and potential sponsors, and I don't think you want to let them see you cry."
Twilight hasn't realized she had been crying, but she forced the thoughts from her mind as the crowd appeared, cheering and shouting. The roar of the public grew loud as Lucky and Twilight appeared, sparks flying, and roses started to cascade upon them.
"They love us!" Lucky shouted, grinning like a maniac. He grabbed Twilight's hoof, but she threw him off, giving him a strange look.
"Come on," he said, pleading. "I know you're upset, but let's at least show some companionship. Who knows what it'll do?"
Twilight reluctantly returned her hoof to Lucky's grasp, and they lifted their forelegs in the air.
The deafening roar that greeted them was magnificent. The screens that lined the runway showed only their faces, and Twilight looked at her face in wonder. The sparks going off from her outfit and the effect of the scintillating sparkles made her look like a magnificent creature, a goddess, a princess. Only as she looked up did she realize that Photo Finish had placed a small crown on her head as a sign of rebellion. While Lucky's mane stayed his normal spiky, slicked back style, Twilight's was slightly curled around her chin on one side and at the tips on the other, like the way she had looked at her coronation.
"You really do look like a ruler," Lucky said, watching the screen as well. "I'm lucky you're my partner."
Twilight smiled wanly.
The chariots came to a rest in a semicircle around the end of the road, where Celestia and the gamekeepers would be watching and addressing the tributes.
A spark lit in the sky, and the ponies oohed as the ruler descended from the sky. Her mane was no longer rainbow, but an orange blanket of flames, and her eyes sparked like embers. Several ponies gasped as a large bronze arrow went careening towards her, but she caught the weapon in her teeth and completed the opening of the Pony Games.
"Welcome, tributes," she said, landing in front of the microphone and shifting her mane back to normal. "Happy Pony Games! And, may the odds be ever in your favor! We commend your courage and your..."
The queen paused, her eyes locked with those of Twilight Sparkle, but her eyes sparked red, and she continued.
"...sacrifice."
***
The chariots pulled into the stables, and Twilight immediately hopped off and ran to the pink mare in front of her.
"Pinkie Pie!" she cried, throwing her forelegs around the mare. Pinkie's mane immediately proofed back up.
"Oh my gosh! Twilight! We have so much to talk about and I threw so many amazing parties in Fillydelphia and I tried to get you to come but they said you couldn't and none of the other girls got my invitations and I really missed you guys there and-" she took a huge breath, "-I can't believe it! It's you!"
"What in Tarn-Fluttershy!" exclaimed a voice from across the circle. The two turned to see Applejack embracing the timid pegasi.
"Applejack! Fluttershy!" Pinkie exclaimed, dragging Twilight over to the two. "Oh my gosh I haven't seen you in ages and I threw so many parties and..."
"Hey! Outta my way!"
Rainbow Dash dragged Rarity through the other tributes, bringing the mare to a stop next to Pinkie.
"See? I told you I saw Pinkie," she said triumphantly. "Heya, guys!"
Twilight could not help the tears, both happy and sad, from pouring down her face. Here were her friends, after all these years, and...
"Girls! I... I can't..." she cried, leaning into Pinkie. The shocking realization that there could only be one victor hit her again. Now, not only would Lucky have to die for her to win, but Applejack, Pinkie, Rarity, Rainbow, and Fluttershy...
***
"Leave me alone!" Twilight screeched, shoving past Rosella and Lucky as they entered their suite, slamming the door to a random bedroom and locking it as she smashes her head against the door. Her horn throbbed, but she seemed to ignore the pain as she screamed.
"Why, Celestia?" she shrieked. "Why all of us?"
She cried and cried before a knock sounded against the light wood.
"Go away, Rose!" she screeched.
"It's me, Twi," Lucky said pleadingly. "Let me in. Please."
Twilight had barely fumbled the lock open before she was caught in the stallion's warm and comforting embrace.
"Shhh," he whispered, shutting out the curious gaze of Rosella. "It's okay. I'm so sorry, Twilight. I didn't realize they were your friends."
Twilight said nothing, instead burying her head in Lucky's shoulder and weeping.
"If you want to leave me at the Cornucopia, that's okay, too," he said quietly.
"No," she choked out. "We're friends. Friends don't abandon each other. We're partners to the end. We'll find a way to make it work. I promise."
"Alright," he said quietly. "I'll go now-"
"No!" she interrupted. "D-don't leave me, Lucky."
"I won't," he said grimly. "Promise."
He guided the weeping mare to the window seat, and she stayed close to him, too upset to let go.
"We are friends," he said, his voice falling almost imperceptibly at the last word. "I'll stay. I am your Lucky Clover, aren't I?"
A small, watery laugh found it's way out of Twilight's lips. She looked up into his sapphire blue eyes and nodded.
"That's why I've got three four-leaf clovers on my flank," he said, smiling at her. "My luck will get you far."
They sat there on the windowsill, chatting gently, watching the stars, and listening to the huge party going on in the streets of Canterlot, and Twilight didn't leave her position next to Lucky. When she finally did leave his side and slip into her silken sheets, Lucky lay on the floor and kept her bad dreams away all night. He didn't relinquish his post until she woke in the morning.
Twilight stepped into the shower and stared at it. She was used to her tiny shower, one with two knobs and one head. A standard appliance.
What she saw before her confounded her. Three heads, five nozzles, and twenty knobs. She turned the largest, and sighed when it let out a stream of hot water. Experimenting, she jabbed a button, and was suddenly covered in a layer of rose-smelling, thick foam. She glanced around trying to find a way to get it off, and grabbed a brush, exfoliating her skin and leaving it raw and pinkish. Twilight rolled her eyes and pressed another button, which let in a steam bath that left her coughing and gasping for breath. Deciding that she was done, she turned off the water and stood, panting, staring at her reflection in the mirror.
A princess would never have such problems. Twilight was sure Celestia never had to deal with raw skin and pink bubbles when she didn't intend to use them.
Groaning, Twilight toweled off and trotted off to find breakfast.
Her jaw hung open as she stared at the food laden table before her. Lucky waved her over, but she just stared until Rosella cleared her throat.
Trotting next to Lucky, she sat down, and noticed his sudden blush as their hooves brushed against each other. She smiled wanly at the stallion before filling her plate with daisy pancakes, tiny roasted birds, and a light hay soup.
"Today starts training," Rosella started. "You have three days of training before the Games. I advise you to examine the survival skills; those are the most important if you are offensively gifted. Do not showcase your skills until your private sessions: leave some things to the mind."
Twilight wanted to protest that all of her friends and most of Celestial Equestria knew her talents, but she didn't want to send Rosella over the edge and make Rose appear, so she kept her mouth shut. It might be wise, to hide from Calla how she had grown...
Lucky stood abruptly and looked down at the two of them.
"Let's get started, then," he said, nodding. "We'll be prepared. We'll be there first. We'll learn as much as our brains can hold before we have to apply ourselves. Now let's go!"
Rosella rolled her eyes before standing and beckoning to Twilight, who had only just started to eat her breakfast. She protested, but the two were already out the door, and the unicorn scrambled to follow.
***
"Greetings, Tributes," the blue pegasus said, looking each of them in the eye. "I'm Cloud Dancer, your trainer for these games. You can call me Dancer."
Twilight glanced nervously around at the room. Spears and swords hung from racks; bows and silver arrows lined the far left wall; a full corner was dedicated to the art of knife throwing. She shuddered and returned her attention to Dancer.
"In a few weeks, twenty-three of you will be dead, and one of you will be alive. You have three days to prepare for the games. Afterwards, you will showcase your talents to the gamekeepers. While you are here, I would like to give you a bit of advice: do not ignore the survival skills. Everypony wants to pick up a sword, but most of you will die from exposure. Ten percent from infection, and twenty percent from dehydration."
Twilight shuddered after realizing that her healing spells would be blocked. Time to go look at those survival stations...
As she was learning to tie knots, Twilight looked up as thuds sounded from the other side of the room. She watched with morbid interest as Calla used a levitation spell to throw knives at moving targets, hitting each one in the center every single time. Trying to keep herself from getting hopeless, Twilight returned to her knot-tying.
A giggle sounded to her right, and Twilight looked up again to see Pinkie dangling from the ceiling by a rope.
"Look, Twilight!" she squealed.
Twilight couldn't help the laughter from escaping her as she discarded her knot and looked around for her friends. Rarity was learning to camouflage in the next station, wincing as she got her pristinely white coat dirty. Applejack was learning where to kick a pony to incapacitate them, a knife in her mouth, and Rainbow was urging Fluttershy to try and learn to cook meat.
"C'mon, Fluttershy!" Rainbow said, gesturing to the fire and the defeathered bird laying on the synthetic grass. "Ya gotta learn how to eat if ya want to make it back home to your animals."
"Why would I want to go back if it means killing some of them?" the yellow pegasus cried, tears flowing down her face as she stared at the dead bird. "Oh, the poor thing! All to teach a pony how to kill more of her own feathered friends!"
Twilight stretched out a hoof to Fluttershy as she collapsed in a shivering mass of pink hair and yellow fur, sobbing uncontrollably, but Rarity got to her faster, streaking paint across the floor as she started rubbing her shoulders and comforting the timid mare. Rainbow smiled wanly at Twilight and shook her head, indicating that the two of them would be able to handle it.
"Hey," Twilight said anyways, kneeling next to her friend. "We're together 'till the end. If it's too hard, I'm sure we can do the hunting for you. You don't even have to eat our catches. We'll surely find edible plants, or something. Maybe we'll get sponsor meals!"
Twilight heard a snicker from behind her, but didn't give Calla the satisfaction of seeing her frown. Instead, a yelp emitted from the blue unicorn, and Twilight turned to see Lucky bent over Calla, who had fallen to the ground.
"You picked the wrong enemy, Lucky Clover," she muttered, picking herself up and leaning into his face. "You better watch your back."
With that, the unicorn and the two ponies from Dodge City trotted off to the bow station. As if to show exactly what she could do, Calla picked up a bow with her bare hands and shot an earth-stallion dummy clean through the forehead, the arrow hitting the wall behind it.
"What are you doing?" Twilight scolded Lucky as he smugly made his way towards the mares. "You may have just guaranteed your own demise."
"It was worth it to best Calla," he said, kneeling next to the mares. "You never introduced me to-"
He fell over as Futtershy wailed and hugged Twilight in a sudden movement, smiling through her tears.
"Th-th-thank you!" she said as loudly as was expected of the quiet pegasus, which was barely audible.
"Um, this is Fluttershy," Twilight said, gently setting Fluttershy on the ground.
"H-hi," she said, peeking through the lock of hair obscuring her face.
"This is Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie," Twilight continued, pointing to the first three in order and gesturing at the whole room for Pinkie.
"Pinkie?" Lucky asked, seeing nopony until the mare in question appeared on her rope inches from the stallion's face, this time clothed in a tight black spy suit. Lucky jumped back in surprise, nodding in answer to his question.
"Hi!" Pinkie squealed, dropping to the floor in a ninja roll. The rest of the elements stared at the stallion until Twilight sighed.
"Girls, this is Lucky Clover," she introduced. "He's my district partner, and he'll be joining our group while in the arena."
"It's a pleasure to meet you all," Lucky said, bowing his head in a gentlecoltly fashion. "I've heard a lot about you from Twilight."
Rarity winked at Twilight, who rolled her eyes. In response, the white unicorn giggled and made an amorous face, to which Fluttershy managed a small giggle. Rainbow eyed Lucky before nodding and turning to the bird, and Applejack stared stonily at the floor.
"Well, then," Twilight said uncomfortably, nudging Lucky. "I think we should get back to training. Any station seem particularly important to you ponies?"
"The sneaky station!" Pinkie suggested, grabbing her rope. Twilight watched with the unsurprised curiosity everypony who knew Pinkie had as the rope suddenly started disappearing into the ceiling, taking the pink pony with it.
"A word, Twilight?" Applejack asked abruptly, grabbing the unicorn and dragging her away without waiting for an answer.
"Applejaaaack!" Twilight exclaimed, the a carried out as she was suddenly pulled away, helpless to the grip of the strong earth pony. "What is it?" she asked as they stopped in a corner.
"Are ya sure ya wanna let Lucky join us?" Applejack asked in a quiet whisper.
"What do you mean?" Twilight asked, frowning at her friend. "Of course I would. I promised I would stay with him in the arena, and friends don't abandon other friends."
Applejack flinched.
"It's just that there are already six of us, and Ah don't know if he's trustworthy, see?" she explained quickly. "Ah don't know if it's a good ahdea, that's all. He'd have to end up dead, anyways, for any of us to win. Why dontcha leave it to somepony else?"
"Friends don't lie to their friends," Twilight argued. "I'd be lying to him if I abandoned him. He's my friend, Applejack."
Applejack snorted.
"Seems like more than a friend to mah eyes," she muttered, too quiet for the unicorn to hear. A little louder, she smiled and said, "Ahlright. If it seems like a good ahdeea to you. Ah trust your judgement."
If Reaping Day had anything happy about it at all, it would be that ponies were allowed to sleep until the afternoon. Twilight groaned and flipped onto her stomach, feeling for wings that were no longer there.
Oh. That's right. They had been gone for quite a while, now.
Twilight winced as she remembered Luna's secret visit to her prison. The princess of the night had given her a gift, one of the last things she could do to resist Celestia. Luna had informed her that she had performed the same ritual over the other Elements of Harmony, giving them the gift of half-mortality. They would age oh-so-slightly by day, but the night would renew their youth and return them to the same state they were in before Twilight was crowned.
"Remember, Twilight Sparkle," Luna had whispered quietly to her before departing, "The fate of the old Equestria rests on thy shoulders. Thou shall always be our fellow ruler in our eyes, and we regret not restraining our sister before she took our freedom. We believe there is still good to be found in our sister. Farewell, Princess. We hope to see thee and thy friends once more."
Twilight rose to her hooves and opened her blinds, gazing out at the empty streets of New Ponyville. The enlarged town was silent in preparation for what was to come, for the Reaping of the 3rd Annual Pony Games.
The Pony Games were the punishment for The Lunar Republic's uprising. Every year, twenty-four young mares and stallions between the ages of twelve and eighteen were randomly chosen to fight to the death in an arena, with only one victor allowed to survive. It was a terrible thing to even think about, and Twilight tried to shove the obtrusive thought from her mind. Her name was in the reaping thrity-one times this year, multiplied every time she had to buy something and did not have the bits to provide for it.
Celestial Equestria seemed to have forgotten about its youngest princess when she had been stripped of her Alicorn powers and cast out of Canterlot. Everypony treated her as worse than an average mare, but she was tolerant. She did not want fame, glory, and favors made for her. It was her honor to silently fight against her former mother-figure with her fellow ponies as an equal.
Her heart ached every time she thought of the betrayal of Celestia. The mere fact that the majestic Alicorn ruler had torturously removed Twilight's wings and cast her out without any sign of remorse or sympathy hit Twilight time and time again, along with the phantom pains along her shoulder blades. The pain in her soul was repeated every time the names of her friends came back up, as she remembered them being ripped from her grasp as the guards, now known as Harmonybalancers, separated the Elements and spreaded them across the country. She remembered her good friend, the Delegate of Saddle Arabia at the time, Amina Abbasi, being torturously stabbed to death before she could send a letter to the Princess of Saddle Arabia a request for Emergency Amity procedures. The memory of Zecora, Ponyville's zebra, being violently ripped from her home in the Everfree Forest and beheaded in the square hurt her heart. She recalled the death of her brother, Shining Armor, as he fought with a small group of rebel guards to keep Old Equestria.
Before she knew it, the crystalline tears were cascading from her eyes, hitting the floor with a gentle cadence.
The commanding voices of Harmonybalancers rang through the square, reaching Twilight's sensitive ears up in the bedroom of the library. The reaping would start in an hour. If a pony tried to stay behind, it was no use. Twilight winced once again as she remembered the unicorn firing squad's beams of magic, time and time again, as they executed a straggler every single year.
"Twi?" Spike asked quietly from the corner. "You okay?"
"Yes, Spike," Twilight responded calmly. "I'm sure all will be fine. You go and stand with Cheerilee, okay?"
Spike nodded and ran out the door, trying to outrun the Harmonybalancers.
The unicorn brushed the snarls out of her navy mane before slowly departing the tree-house. It was her last year in the reaping, as she was finally eighteen, though her appearance was still that of a fifteen-year-old mare, but it meant nothing to anypony but herself. If Twilight was not chosen this last time, she was free to travel between districts. She could go find her friends. They might be able to save Equestria.
She silently thanked Luna for her gift, though she feared the Princess was no more. After The Lunar Republic, so named by Celestia after the revolt, had been defeated, the ruler of the night had never been heard from again.
The Harmonybalancers were just knocking on her door as she opened it, rudely shoving past them in an act of defiance and slowly trotting to the town square.
There, a podium had been set up in front of the abandoned town hall. The mayor of Ponyville grimly gazed out at the other ponies, grieving already for the ponies she had known for all of their lives. Next to her sat a lavishly decorated mare, her sparkly mane glinting in the sunlight. She was a crystal pony, one of the lucky chosen jewel ponies chosen to be part of the Canterlot Elite when Cadence had been executed and the rest of the Crystal Empire destroyed. Besides being a high and mighty Canterlotian, Twilight had heard things about Rosella Petals, like that she had multiple personality disorder, and though she seemed happy and chipper in public, the tragic end to her country and the old memories of King Sombra had damaged the mare far beyond repair.
Twilight found her way to the front section, roped off by age like the rest of the tribute candidate areas. Her old friends, Bon Bon, Lyra Heartstrings, Rose, Ditzy Doo, Lotus Blossom, and Aloe stood around her, silently loathing Canterlot and the now-Queen Celestia.
Twilight looked around at the others standing with her. Her heart stopped as she caught sight of the former Cutie Mark Crusaders huddled together in the twelve-year-old area as she remembered that the now-decorated-flanked fillies were indeed old enough for the Games.
Not them, she pleaded silently. If you pick anypony, let it be anypony but those poor little fillies.
She turned and looked up to the stage as the impatient Rosella tapped on the microphone, ready to begin.
"Fillies and gentlecolts," she said into the microphone, her voice laced with syrupy sugar, "welcome to the District of New Ponyille's Reaping for the 3rd Annual Pony Games!"
She paused for applause, but she was greeted with cold silence and poisonous stares.
"Let us begin," she said finally. "Fillies first."
Twilight could feel her heart pounding as she recited the same thing over and over again in barely a whisper, no longer caring if she was chosen or not.
"Not Sweetie Belle. Not Apple Bloom. Not Scootaloo. Not Sweetie Belle. Not Apple Bloom. Not Scootaloo..."
Rosella gracefully trotted over to the first bowl, full of folded paper with the names of the young mares written in neat calligraphy. She swirled her hoof over the bowl before delving deep into the deep bowl, extracting one slip of thick paper and trotting back to the microphone. With quick and precise movements, she pulled off the seal and opened the paper.
"Apple Bloom!"