The Greatest Destiny

We thought he was reformed. At least, that's what Fluttershy and Princess Celestia had announced, but now look at us. Our land is lying in ruins, ponies are scattered throughout the region rotting in the streets and orchards, buildings are turned to rubble.

Our princesses are dead.

A somber figure stands out against the burning sunset, slowly raising and lowering shovelfuls of dirt and quietly whimpering under her breath. She is not alone as another pony is seen quietly resting beside a scorched tree. Her mane has become flattened in spite of her more cheerful nature and she quietly cries to herself under the unwelcoming branches.

Scoop. Scoop. Pile after pile of earth is thrown to the side, yet the pony continues to be unaided as she continues digging. She slowly turns to look at the pony resting by the tree, but soon turns back seeing that the pony will not help her.

Then she looks the other direction.

A silent pony stands by some of the last remaining water in the area and allows a few small tears to stain the precious liquid. Her stetson hat is spotted with patches of burned felt and a large scar runs down the side of her shoulder. She briefly opens her eyes to see her reflection staring back, duplicating the sorrow of her own spirit.

"She said he was reformed," the pony mutters to herself. "Why would Celestia lie?" She begins to feel anger well up inside of her. The bright orange of her coat begins to turn red.

"Applejack," the pony digging says comfortingly. "M-maybe something bad happened to him and-and-"

"And what, Fluttershy?!" Applejack snapped back at her. "You said he was better! You said so yerself!" The tears continued cascading down her face, dripping into the water. Fluttershy backed away from Applejack, stifled a cry, and then continued digging. "And what're you doin' that fer? There's too many bodies ta bury!"

"Not when it's for three of our best friends!" Fluttershy responded harshly, then scooped up a final chunk of dirt. She wiped sweat off her forehead and placed the shovel on the ground. Then she opened a rough oats sack by her side and pulled out a shimmering object.

Applejack choked at the sight of it.

"Where'd you get that? There was nothin' left a her!"

"Apparently not. I found this where the battle took place," Fluttershy answered, throwing the object into the hole she had created. Then she started tossing dirt back on top of it and continued to weep. A tall tombstone stood next to Fluttershy, bearing the treasured mark of their newest princess who hadn't returned from the final confrontation.

"Now he rules over everything!" Applejack shouted, cursing his name to the sky... what was left of it, anyway. "He killed her, Fluttershy!" Applejack turned to look at her friend. The object glinted in the sun as Fluttershy continued to throw dirt on top of it. Applejack scowled as she remembered when her friend had worn that to defeat him in the first place. Now it was nothing but another relic of a past world. "He killed Twilight!"

"I know," Fluttershy responded, trying to contain herself, but to no avail.

"Why did the other two have to go with her?" Applejack asked. "Why did we have to lose them too?"

"Don't say anymore!" Fluttershy shrieked, trying to block out the horror.

"Rarity," Applejack muttered, quietly starting to stroke her mane. She giggled at the memory of Rarity putting curlers in her mane and daring her to play dress up.

In a glittery, froo-froo, lacy outfit!

The words came back to her like a songbird singing in the spring. She missed that fussy pony. She longed for her company and compassion. Applejack even dipped her hoof into the water and dabbed a dirt stain away on her face, smiling with pride as the filth ran down her leg and dropped harmlessly onto the ground.

Then she remembered that she still had someone else to remember.

This was the hardest to bear.

"And...an-" she choked, shaking uncontrollably and starting to breath rapidly. She grabbed at her chest, trying to will her lungs to move faster. The memory of her best friend clawed at her heart and almost ripped the life right out of her. However, she needed to continue. She had to accept the fact that her friend was dead and that she was never coming back.

"R-R-" she paused to take in a breath and control herself. "R-R-Rainbow D-Dash," Then she felt the anger well up inside again, this time there was too much. She growled and hissed between her teeth and then wailed as loudly as she could. She smashed her legs into the water, soaking the entire front half of her body.

"RAINBOW!" she screamed as the water jumped around and created numerous rings of chaos. She gritted her teeth and cursed under her breath, unwilling to shout such profane words to the world. "Why?" she asked. "Why?"

The water began to settle down, slowly adjusting to Applejack's hooves being there. Applejack stared at her reflection once more, still seeing the pain and the tragedy.

But then... then she saw something else.

Her eyes began to dry up and they obtained a calm and confident look. Her yellow mane un-knotted and began to smoothly flow without the assistance of the wind. A long horn began to grow from her forehead, stretching up to touch the sky. Two wings extended out to the sides, mighty and majestic. The polluted sky cleared and clouds came back, some white and fluffy, some filled with rain water and snow.

Then her stetson hat was replaced with a shimmering crown and upon her chest was placed a golden plate, emblazoned with an emblem that Applejack did not recognize.

Applejack stared at the strange phenomenon, then blinked. The image slowly vanished, leaving Applejack confused... and disturbed.

"This is one ah Discord's tricks!" She assured herself nervously. "He means to mock me!" She slapped her hoof across the surface of the water, sending a spray across the ground. The dry land greedily drank it up and looked no better than it had before. Applejack sighed and slung her head again, giving one final glance over to Fluttershy as she put the finishing touches on Twilight's grave.

"Goodbye, Twilight," Fluttershy whispered. "We'll all miss you," Then she walked over to the mare by the tree and gently lifted her to her hooves. The party pony flinched as her wounds cried out to remain still, but she stood all the same. "Pinkie?"

"Twilight..." Pinkie Pie murmured. Applejack quickly ran to her side and stared at her friend in shock. Ever since Discord had taken control, she hadn't spoken a word or even looked anypony directly in the eye. Now she was doing both.

"Rarity..." she continued, staring into Fluttershy's eyes. "Rainbow Dash..."

"Yes," Fluttershy answered. "Rainbow Dash is gone, too,"

Silence followed as the three remaining friends glanced from one to the other, contemplating their next action. Then, Applejack took a small step forward towards the center of their little circle. Fluttershy joined her, beckoning to Pinkie Pie to follow them. Step by step, they inched towards one another. Then they stopped, mere centimeters away.

Then they hugged.

"Twilight, Rarity, and Rainbow may be gone," Applejack started. "But we still have each other,"

The three ponies sniffled as they continued the embrace. Nothing could break up this moment.

Until they heard a loud explosion emanating from the direction of Canterlot. They quickly shot their gazes over to the 'floating' city and gaped in bewilderment. Celestia's castle had just been destroyed.

"By Discord, no doubt!" Fluttershy said with spite.

"What are we going to do?" Pinkie asked, looking over to Applejack.

Applejack paused for a minute to think, but it didn't take long to come up with a solution. Applejack started walking towards Canterlot, slamming her hooves into the ground and snorting in rage.

"Where are you going?" Fluttershy asked with concern.

Applejack froze and looked back at her two friends. Her emerald eyes sparkled with a new-found hope.

"To stop him," was all that she said.