Chapters Chapter 1: The Aftermath of the First Time
Author's Note
This probably requires a bit of explanation, since I'm pretty sure a lot of people in general don't watch the show, to say nothing of MLP fans...
Forever is a TV show put out by ABC that features a doctor named Henry Morgan. For reasons unknown to both him and the audience, he has found himself in a state of immortality. He can still die; however, every time he dies, he's resurrected in water (naked, to boot). The show is three-quarters crime procedural/case of the week, and one-quarter plot about finding out the cause of this immortality. It's a very good, fun show, but the odds are good that it won't get renewed for next year. Which is why I'm posting all of the Forever fic I can before it's no longer relevant.
At any rate, the episodes always open and close with Henry monologueing about death in a way that's relevant to the week's case. One day, as a joke, I prefaced the monologue with "Dear Princess Celestia..." and then the plot bunny hit.
Hopefully that's all the background you'll need to enjoy this. And if it inspires you to check out Forever , I'll consider that a bonus.
Chapter 1: The Aftermath of the First Time
1814
The first thing Henry Morgan became aware of was something hot and loose under his hands and something wet soaking his legs. His head spun as he tried to get his thoughts in order. Where was he? The last thing he remembered was being on board the ship, in a driving rainstorm, and then…
Henry’s eyes snapped open as it all came back to him. The sick man, the way the captain callously intended to throw that man’s life away, Henry stepping in to intervene, and then the gunshot. It had been point blank in the chest; by all accounts, Henry should have been dead. And yet, here he was.
He sat up, only vaguely noting his surroundings (a sandy beach), too intent on taking stock of the damage. Looking down at himself, he saw that his clothes were gone—torn apart by the waves, no doubt. But what really stood out was the mark on his chest. While there was certainly evidence of his having been shot, the wound was recessed, faded. To an outside observer, it would look like a scar from an injury that had happened years ago, not the night before. Henry touched the wound gingerly, but felt no pain. This would require further study, but for now, all that mattered was that he’d somehow survived, and that he needed to find his way to civilization. Based on his perusal of the ship maps, the islands in this area were uninhabited, meaning he would find no assistance here. He didn’t much fancy staying here and hoping to spot a passing ship, so his only option was to brave the ocean once more. He wasn’t exactly versed in survival tactics, but his readings and observations would hopefully be enough to see him through.
A quick examination of the island proved it to be more hospitable than Henry could have hoped for. There was a small grove of trees a short distance from the beach, with plenty of large branches and slender trunks on the ground (no doubt due to the storm), and low hanging vines that required a great deal of effort to break. Still better was the small stream he found in the middle of the grove, which offered fresh water, alongside trees bearing exotic but edible fruits. It took the better part of the day, but there was enough material there for Henry to fashion a crude raft. A little more work allowed him to make some containers to store water, enough that, if he used it sparingly, he would hopefully be able to survive long enough for a ship to find him.
He spent the night near the stream, trying to get a good night’s sleep. Then, loading up the raft with the water containers, fruits, and some large palm leaves to shield him from the sun, he pushed out to sea. Once he was safely aboard the raft, he glanced back at the island almost regretfully. It had done right by him, and he would have almost enjoyed exploring it, if he didn’t have more important matters to attend to.
(Even those matters fell by the wayside, however, when another storm blew him off the raft, and he was unable to keep himself afloat to swim back to it. When he sank to the bottom, lungs burning and vision going black, only to re-emerge five minutes later through no power of his own, he started to realize that perhaps his initial survival was much more complicated than it had first appeared.)
Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter. Chapter 3: An Ending Earned
Henry composed himself and made up his mind to respond to the princess (now that he looked, he could see a golden tiara on her head) as though this was an everyday occurrence for him. Even if this all turned out to be a hallucination, perhaps the conversation would offer a new direction for his research to take. As such, he turned his chair around to face the alicorn and said “And what would you know of my immortality? That’s not a fact I bandy about publicly.”
Celestia sat down. “It’s probably better if I just start from the beginning.” Henry nodded, and she looked up at the ceiling, as though recalling something. After a moment, she began.
“I come from a country called Equestria, a land populated entirely by ponies. As my title suggests, I am its ruler, and due to the magic of Equestria, I, too have been granted immortality. The reasons for it are unclear, but that’s the way it’s always been.”
Henry tried to keep his expression neutral, but his eyebrows arched involuntarily. She wasn’t the first fellow immortal he’d run into, but it seemed even harder to believe in this case. Then again, she was a talking alicorn princess; that may have been affecting his judgement. Celestia hadn’t noticed his reaction, still looking at the ceiling. “Most of the time, I take my immortality in stride. It’s just a fact of life for me. Only twice have I ever seen it as a burden. Once was when I was forced to banish a pony I loved, and spent many years in mourning. The second was when my adviser, a pony who had been born in my palace, who I had seen grow up, who had served me well all his life, died. Having seen him grow and age hit me much harder than any of the other losses I’d experienced. I believe it was due to the last conversation we ever had. I had come to pay my respects and say goodbye, and was crying a little. He smiled at me. ‘Do not weep for me too long, Princess,’ he said, ‘I’ve lived a long, happy life, and now I will rest peacefully. I have no fear of death.’”
Celestia lowered her head, closing her eyes, as though the memory still pained her. Henry’s heart gave a sympathetic throb; that was an experience he knew all too well. Celestia continued, her eyes still closed.
“That’s when I realized that I had no real understanding of death. I had read about it, seen it happen, had even, reluctantly, been the cause of it. But due to my immortality, I could never experience it for myself. In my mourning for my advisor, my feelings of loss tied in with a feeling of inadequacy. How could I govern my subjects if I didn’t understand one of the fundamental facts of normal life? What, if anything, could I do about it?”
She lifted her head and looked Henry directly in the face. “It was during that period, when the loss was still fresh and I was brooding over what to do, that I received a report that a human had washed up on the far shores of Equestria.”
Henry tensed, heart pounding against his ribs. She gave an almost imperceptible nod. “I teleported myself over there the moment I heard. The man was barely alive, his lungs full of water and blood leaking out of a wound in his chest. Whatever he had been through, life had not been kind to him.
“This was not the first human who had been shipwrecked on Equestria. Some, we had been too late to save, and we buried them at sea. Some were still alive, and we kept an eye on them, either secretly supplying them with what they needed or eventually revealing ourselves to them, and helped them to return home in exchange for a promise of secrecy. And in a very few cases, if they were near death, I would revive them. But this time, still wrapped up in my desire to understand death, I looked down at the human before me, and I made up my mind to do something incredibly unorthodox.”
Henry was openly staring at her again. She exhaled slowly, and there was guilt in her voice as she said “I had, in my studies of magic, come across a spell that granted immortality. Unlike my own immortality, which seemed to have some more natural cause, this one had no prevention against dying, though the death would not be permanent. The resurrection would tie into the same situation the pony, or person in this case, was in when the spell was cast. If it was cast while falling from a great height, they would come to in a high place. If it was cast in the middle of battle, they would come to somewhere where there was a fight going on. In your case, the odds were good that your rebirths would involve nudity and water. But the fact that the spell combined immortality with death was what really mattered to me at that moment. If I couldn’t experience death myself, I thought, I would experience it by proxy.”
She closed her eyes again. “I cast the spell, which closed the wound and lifted the water from your lungs, and then, when your breathing became steady, I cast a second spell. I suppose it’s something like a post-hypnotic suggestion; I planted the idea in your mind to write about your experiences with death. The thoughts would be your own, but the impetus was mine. When the time was right, I thought, I would come to you, perhaps in secret, and read through what you had written, and thus gain that understanding of death that I lacked.”
“Once I’d finished, I returned to Canterlot and left you to your own devices. I was impressed when a second report came and said you had used our resources to try to rescue yourself, without calling for help or bemoaning your fate. I felt more than ever that I’d made the right choice.”
She rose to her feet, but kept her head lowered. “I must humbly apologize, Doctor Morgan. I have used my magic to look in on you from time to time, and seen only a fraction of what you must have gone through. I acted in grief, without considering the consequences, and you were the one who had to suffer for it. Forgive me for my selfishness.”
Henry’s mind was still processing all that she’d told him, and his emotions were going through a similar upheaval. Part of him was delighted that he’d finally found the cause of his immortality. Another part was relieved that there had been no sinister intent behind Celestia’s motives. A third part was, understandably, angry that he’d been jailed, thought mad, and watched loved ones fade away, all to be part of someone’s experiment. And yet for all that, the one feeling that came through the strongest was sympathy. Here was someone who knew what it felt like to have the world change around them, who had been blinded by grief and reacted with the twisted logic that grief could cause. If he’d been in her place, mightn’t he have done the same thing? Wasn’t it possible that he might have cast a similar spell on Abe after Abigail had gone, just to ensure that he wouldn’t lose someone else? Yes, he had a strong moral code, but in times of great stress, morality had the unpleasant tendency to waver.
Celestia’s head was still bowed, waiting for his response. Henry rose to his feet. “I accept your apology, Princess Celestia. And while there are some incidents I will always hold you responsible for despite myself, I forgive you.”
“Thank you, Henry,” Celestia said, raising her head and giving him a grateful smile, “It’s a weight off my heart to hear you say that. What I did to you has been one of my greatest shames. And now it’s time for me to make amends as best I can.”
“How?” Henry said, more sharply than he’d intended.
A yellow aura shone around Celestia’s horn as she lifted Henry’s journal into the air. “First, I must ask one last favor of you. The reason I finally approached you was not for my sake, but for someone else’s. In the years since I cast the spell on you, another alicorn has come into being, and with it, gained immortality. Earlier this year, one of her dearest friends passed away, and she has been thrown into a grief similar to my own all those years ago. To prevent her from making my mistake, I wish to borrow your journals and allow her to read them, telling her the whole story. Perhaps it will be enough to help her to heal.”
Henry nodded. “Of course, Princess. Far be it from me to stand in the way of something that could improve a patient’s condition.”
Celestia smiled slightly at his choice of words. “I will return them as soon as I can. Thank you again. And now, for my end. In the years since I first ‘met’ you, I have read through more books on the subject of magic and immortality, and found a spell that can reverse the effects of the first spell I cast on you. It will undo your immortality and allow you to age, but you will keep your memories of the past two hundred years. You will be able to live out a normal life, although evidence suggest there will be enough lingering effects of the first spell that, barring some unfortunate accident, you will live to a ripe old age.”
“No man could ask for better,” Henry said, feeling his heart leap in excitement, “What will it take to cast it?”
“Hardly anything,” Celestia smiled, “You merely have to open your shirt and bare your wound to me.”
Henry immediately unbuttoned his shirt and allowed it to fall to his wrist, held in place by the buttoned cuffs. Celestia stepped forward, her horn glowing again. “You may wish to close your eyes.”
Henry wanted to keep his eyes open to see exactly what was going on, but the moment her horn touched the scar on his chest, the yellow glow seemed to fill the room, and he was forced to close his eyes anyway. A warmth spread through his body, causing his skin to prickle, though not unpleasantly, and giving him a general feeling of weightlessness. For all his years of study and firm belief in science, he had to admit that the sensation was something he would be hard pressed to explain logically.
After a minute or so, the warmth started to fade, and he heard Celestia step away. “There. It’s done.”
Henry opened his eyes and looked down at himself. His heart leapt and his breath caught in his throat when he saw that the scar had disappeared completely, leaving smooth skin in its place. It truly was over. No more running, no more secrets, no more threats. Except for…
He looked back at Celestia. “Forgive me, Princess, but I need to ask. I’ve recently run into an immortal with the same condition as myself, a man who calls himself Adam. He’s been causing difficulties for me, and I fear he could cause massive damage with my immortality gone. Would you know anything about him?”
Celestia’s mouth thinned. “Yes. I only recently became aware of his existence myself. Rest assured that I had nothing to do with his immortality. As soon as I have discussed things with…certain parties, we will make sure to keep Adam from ever troubling you again.”
“Thank you,” Henry said, rubbing the place where his scar used to be before beginning to button up his shirt once more, “And if I could ask for one last favor…?”
“Of course.”
He smiled. “Would you mind coming upstairs and waiting with me in the kitchen so that you can explain things to my son Abe personally? I don’t think he’ll believe me if I tell him myself.”
Celestia laughed. “Absolutely. Perhaps we can read through your journals while we wait. I would be fascinated to see your thoughts evolve over the years.”
Henry smiled back and moved to a corner of the room, where he stored his other journals. “It would be a pleasure. Go on upstairs and make yourself comfortable; I’ll bring my journals up and then make a pot of tea.”
Chapter 4: The Rise of Henry Morgan
Henry blinked at the princess, still not quite sure how to respond to the situation. Finally, he decided that politeness was the best option. “Er…sit down, please. I have the sense that this is going to take a while to explain.”
“Not as much time as you might think,” Celestia answered, though she obligingly sat down, “Though it may be difficult for you to process.”
“I should be able to manage,” Henry said, a little dryly, “Try me.”
Celestia smiled, her horn glowing yellow as she levitated up Henry’s journal. “I am the ruler of a country called Equestria, whose inhabitants are comprised entirely of ponies. The entire land is surrounded by magic, which bestows special properties on those who live there. Earth ponies have a special connection to land, giving them great strength, pegasi become masters of the sky, and unicorns, of course, tap into the magic directly. To one who knows what to look for, they can see a ‘spark’ inside each pony, a special energy unique to only them. It ties in to their cutie marks, and it ties them to Equestria as a whole. Do you follow?”
“For the most part,” Henry said, “But what does this have to do with me?”
“Occasionally,” Celestia said, flipping through Henry’s journal as she spoke, eyes running over the various entries, “humans wind up on Equestria, through shipwreck or exploration. Generally, we either hide ourselves from them or, if they can be trusted, reveal ourselves to them and help them return home. However, two hundred years ago, you washed up on the shores of Equestria, close to death. When I came to inspect you and see if there was anything I could do, my magic located something deep inside you. Probing a little further, I realized to my surprise that you contained that same spark.”
Henry blinked. “Are you saying that I’m…I’m part Equestrian?” he finished, not wanting to say “part pony” out loud. That way lay madness.
“No,” Celestia said, “Though I don’t blame you for thinking that way. It was the first thought that went through my mind when I saw it. In my subsequent research over the years, I’ve come to the conclusion that your 'death' occurred within Equestrian borders, and the magic of the place, sensing something inside you, activated a dormant spark. Perhaps all humans have the spark as well, but it needs the right catalyst to activate it.
“At any rate, I had never seen a spark in a human before, and decided to nurture it, feeling like there was a deeper purpose at play. I healed you as best I could, and gently nudged the spark with my own magic, hoping to convince it to develop as it saw fit. As I soon learned, that direction chose to be in granting you immortality. Curious, I have kept my eye on you for these past two hundred years, wanting to determine what exactly it all meant. And now, I’ve finally realized the answer.”
"Yes…?” Henry said, wary but excited despite himself at the thought of finally getting an answer to the mystery.
Celestia waved the journal at him before placing it in his hands. “These two hundred years were just to give you time to fully understand the nuances of life and death. Your musings on the topic make it clear that you’ve thought it over deeply, and while you might not be an expert, you certainly know more about it than any other human or pony. And it means you’re ready.”
“Ready for what?” Henry said, now completely confused.
Celestia just smiled and lifted her head in the air, her horn glowing once more. There was another flash of light, and Henry closed his eyes instinctively. When the bright dots faded from behind his lids, he opened them, and found that they had been transported out of the basement. In fact, they appeared to have left the earth entirely. They were surrounded by the night sky, and more white stars were gathered under their feet, as though they were standing on the Milky Way. And yet, they were able to breathe just fine, and the air was warm. Henry was torn between being nervous and being in awe.
Celestia placed a reassuring hoof on his shoulder, then stepped forward, beckoning for him to follow. Hesitantly, he did so. As they walked, Celestia began to sing, in a beautiful, clear voice full of promise.
“You’ve come such a long, long way… ”
“Let me see if I’ve got this. You’re telling me that the whole immortality thing was a giant learning period to get you to learn about death?” Abe said, sounding understandably incredulous.
“Yes,” Henry said, staring down into his teacup, not sure he’d be able to look Abe in the face, “Hard as it is to believe, that was just Phase One.”
“And Phase Two came about when the magic decided you fully understood the concept?”
“Right.”
“I guess that makes sense. But why the…”
Henry sighed and shifted uncomfortably in his chair, feeling his new wings brush against the back of the seat. “It’s just the way Equestrian magic works. When you’ve proven to understand a subject in a way that no one else does, you…become an alicorn. It’s happened four times before that anyone knows of, though this is the first time it’s happened to a human. The magic doesn’t seem to care one way or the other, though.”
“So,” and now the amusement was creeping into Abe’s voice, “Does this mean you can fly now?”
Henry flexed his shoulders in irritation, causing his wings to ruffle, “Eventually, yes. I’ll need lessons, but Celestia’s promised to send someone to teach me. The same goes for learning how to use my new…” he pointed upwards at the six inch unicorn horn jutting out of the middle of his forehead. He rolled his eyes and took a sip of tea. “I supposedly have immense power, but right now, all I’ve succeeded in doing is looking ridiculous.”
“Speaking of which, tell me what your new title is over in Equestria again?” Abe’s voice was wobbling dangerously.
Henry didn’t even have it in him to glare. “The Princess of Death.”
Abe burst out laughing. Henry buried his face in his hands, having to shift his fingers to accommodate the horn. “They couldn’t at least amend it to Prince?” Abe choked out.
“Celestia’s working on that,” Henry said, “It’s just that every alicorn up till now has been female. The official documentation needs to be edited, but she assured me it will be done in time for my…coronation.”
“And I’m invited, right?” Abe said, just barely able to compose himself.
“Of course you are,” Henry said, his tone softening, “As if I’d keep you away if you really wanted to go.”
“Of course I want to go!” Abe answered emphatically, “I want to check out this Equestria place for myself! Besides, you’re going to need all the support you can get, being a human and all.”
“I appreciate that, Abraham,” Henry said, finally raising his head and looking at Abe, “I really do.”
“Hey, that’s what family’s for,” Abe shrugged, even though an amused smile was still firmly attached to his face, “In the meantime, though, we’ve got to figure out how to deal with all this.”
“Celestia will be coming back tomorrow to teach me a spell that will allow me to mask the wings and horn when I’m out in public. Hopefully that will be enough. In the meantime, I’ll use my vacation days and claim I’m heading out into the country with you for a few days. That should prevent anyone from calling and demanding my help.”
Abe nodded. “Sounds good.” Then he rose to his feet. “I should get dinner started. Beef Stew sound good to you? Or…” He glanced upwards and snickered, “Are you more in the mood for hay?”
It took all of Henry’s self-restraint not to start cursing.
“Heya, Henry!” Lucas said cheerfully, as Henry entered the morgue three days later, “Have a good vacation?”
“It was…pleasant.” Henry settled on, his shoulders relaxing when Lucas didn’t give any sign of noticing anything out of the ordinary (then again, this was Lucas he was talking about). The spell seemed to be working; though he could still feel the presence of the wings and horn, there was no outward sign of them, and anyone who brushed against his back or forehead for whatever reason wouldn’t be able to tell they were there. He’d have to cast the spell every morning, but it was a reasonable compromise. And at least there was no way he’d ever forget to cast it.
He removed his coat and scarf, trying to keep his voice casual. “Anything I should know about?”
“Nah. Dr. Larson took over what little work came in while you were out. I swear, most of the action seems to taper off when you’re not here.”
Henry flinched. Was that his fault? Did his—*sigh*—talent for death mean that death was attracted to him? He’d have to ask Celestia about that when she came to visit this weekend. Aloud, however, he merely said “Perhaps that trend will continue. Detectives Martinez and Hanson could use a break. Keep an eye on the morgue, will you? I’ll be in my office, catching up on what I missed.”
“You got it!” Lucas said with a grin, while Henry retreated into his office, sighing in relief when he finally got the door closed. Until he was sure he had a handle on the spell, he’d try to limit his contact with people as much as possible.
Sitting at his desk, he pulled out the files on the deaths that had occurred during his absence. Opening the first folder, he groaned. Whoever had written up the reports had arranged things totally haphazardly, sticking the photos in front of the report, jamming in papers at odd angles, and worse, ensured that the whole lot fell into his lap the moment he opened the folder a little wider. And based on the bits of paper he could see sticking out from the other files, the rest had been assembled in the same way. Lucas, for all his faults, knew how to properly file these things. Which meant that this was all the work of his replacement.
“Thanks, M.E. Larson.” Henry muttered to himself, spreading the files out carefully on his desk and starting to rearrange them properly. Still, this was just the distraction he needed. Being elbow-deep in paperwork was comforting, familiar, and exactly what he needed right now. Magic and flying was all well and good, but the world of medicine and anatomy…that was where he really belonged. After his coronation, he intended to tell Celestia in no uncertain terms that he was remaining in the human world, where he’d be able to do the most good. He had a feeling she’d be amenable to that.
Besides, he needed to track down Adam. Celestia had informed him that Adam was not in the running to become an alicorn, having come by his immortality via some sort of malicious entity known as Discord. With Henry’s new abilities, he was hoping he would be able to drive Adam away for good—scare him straight, as it were. The thought made Henry grin a little. It was the first time he’d seen any benefit to this transformation.
There was a knock on the door. “Sorry, Henry, but a body’s just come in. Seems like your standard hit-and-run, but you know how it goes.”
“That I do,” Henry said, rising to his feet and bringing along the properly sorted files to place in the records, “Come on, Lucas, let’s get to work.”
As Henry set down the files and picked up his toolkit, he reflected that, despite the wings and horn, he was still Henry Morgan. That counted for a lot, and as long as he remembered that, this wasn’t the end of everything. He’d learned to work with his immortality; he could work with this.
And maybe now he’d be able to teleport some clothes on himself after a resurrection.