Why were they screaming? It didn't make sense. They didn't make sense. They couldn't see what she was truly trying to accomplish. Her amazing feat- saving the elements. Not to mention- the bearers. Then why, why were they fighting? Couldn't they see this was for the greater good? The chance to one day, awake, to a better Equestria. But no- they had to be against it. They had to frustrate her. They never could see her point of view. And she couldn't entirely blame them, she was a princess. She had a responsibility that none of them had ever-
or would ever, understand. They were- ponies. But not any less important than her.That was fact- and the reason she was doing this. She tried to explain, but they fought, yelled, simply couldn't understand.
Twilight couldn't help but glare at the papers before her. The missing reports, the concern. From the royal princesses to the apple family. They were going to be missed. That much was certain. But this was essential to Equestria. For the greater good. Her head fell as she glanced over to a large blood spot upon the floor. She swallowed her sadness at whose blood it was, holding back her tears. She never wanted it to go that far, but sometimes sacrifices needed to be made. She grunted in exhaustion, trying and failing to not remember the chaos that had ensued that day.
*
"Are you insane!?" Applejack roared at Twilight. She stomped her hood at the ground, and it seemed to shake at the sudden impact.
"Just- think about it!" Twilight smiled nervously. "This- these containers could keep you alive for centuries! Decades! Years! Forever!"
"Do you even realize what you're asking of us?!" Rainbow Dash interrupted, flying in front of Twilight in a defensive position.
"To help protect Equestria! Which is a reasonable demand!"
"Demand?" Rarity spat, disgusted. Twilight had never seen such hate in their eyes, followed by horror. Twilight wanted to correct herself, but the white coated unicorn didn't give her the chance. "Since when do you believe you get to demand us to do things like this?"
"Since I became a princess! Since I became the princess of friendship. Thus it is my duty to conserve the only elements of harmony and friendship! And it is your obligation to do what is necessary to protect and serve Equestria as the bearers of friendship!"
"Obligation?" Pinkie Pie stuttered, her voice quivering in shock. "Friendship is something magical. Making friends is magical. It's an honor to make friends and be a bearer of friendship. But it's not a..."Pinkie Pie stopped, her eyes darting across the floor beneath her, as if she was looking for something. "An obligation..."
"But it is! Don't you see?! The elements chose us- chose you!"
"Because of our friendship! A key!" Applejack yelled. "Our power together as friends isn't a...a... a weapon." Twilight growled.
"You don't even see it do you... how selfish you're being." Fluttershy had nothing to say this whole time. She was in too much shock that Twilight was even capable of something like this. That she thought of something like this. That she was okay with this...but selfish?
"How dare you!" Fluttershy shouted, rushing into the air above her five friends. The insanity in Twilight's eyes horrified Fluttershy. But this wouldn't stand. "You can't just...ask us to abandon our lives! Yes, we're the bearers of Equestria, but we're also ponies! We're living beings with lives of our own. Families of our own. Friends of our own!" She stompped gently upon the ground, glaring at Twilight. "What do you expect to happen if a villan attacks tommorow?"
"Then I wake you up!" Twilight was quick to respond to anypony who said her ideas and beliefs were wrong.
"And what if nothing ever happens again? What if all the hate, vengeance, anger is finally over?"
"That's not possible. There will always be a villain. Always."
"But what if there isn't? Are we supposed to stay in there until Equestria slowly dies out. I'm no science expert Twilight, but even with these things, our bodies will wear out. What happens when these don't work anymore!?"
"I'll move you to another one!"
"Who's to say you'll be around then? You just said, this could last years! Who do you know who's insane enough to make sure we stay alive in those things? Will you just keep passing us down, pony to pony? When will somepony stop caring? When will somepony not be sure why we're so important, kill us in there, and everything you're doing now will be for nothing?!"
"Stop it!" Twilight screamed. Fluttershy had taken her off guard. Considering she hadn't even thought that far ahead with all the months of planning. Fluttershy did it in minutes. All Twilight had cared about was getting them in the containers. Why she had been so careless about the after math, she didn't know.
"Why?" Fluttershy tilted her head. "So you can continue to think in some way, this is right? That this is okay?"
"It is." Twilight barely whispered. The door opening to the basement slowly creaked open.
"Twilight?" A voice spoke. Spike. Why was he here? He supposed to be in Canterlot with Starlight. Gone. So he wouldn't get in the way, mostly. Despite going through with the plan, she wanted to leave him out of it. She didn't want him to see this side of her. Before any of her friends could speak, Twilight shut their muzzles closed and lifted them into the air with her magic, throwing them out of sight. "Funniest thing-" Spike was lifted into the air by Twilight's magic and thrown with full speed towards her face. Spike screamed until he saw Twilight's face. She looked exhausted. Her eye twitched, and Spike's expression went from scared to concerned.
"Why are you here." Twilight said monotone, her eyes practically boring through him.
"I was going to tell you," Spike chuckled softly. "Starlight and I got to Canterlot, and I realized I forgot my I.D. for the library. Kinda funny, I never thought I'd need it again, because I do live in a library." Twilight dropped Spike carelessly, turning her back to him.
"Leave. Now."
"T-Twilight? Are you okay?"
"I'm perfectly fine. You just need to go right no-" Rarity suddenly shot at Twilight's hoof. The purple princess leaped back in shock. Rarity looked exhausted as she stepped forward. Rarity might not have been good at magic, or have a particular talent for it, but she was still a unicorn. Rainbow Dash flew forward to try and pin Twilight down, but the alicorn shot her with a beam of magic. Within seconds,the blue pegasus was on the ground. Twilight grinned. Rarity- despite being exhausted, charged forward, her horn glistening. "I can fix you up after Rarity. But this is punishment." Twilight's horn sparked as she shot a powerful beam of magic at the unicorn.
"NO!" Spike yelled, jumping in front of Rarity. In a millisecond, the dragon was laying upon the ground in a heap. Horrified- Twilight ran to the young dragon. That spell- was more harmful to dragons than ponies. Another reason she wanted him gone while she got her friends together.
"N-no..." Twilight sobbed barely above a whisper. In seconds her hooves and coat were covered in red."No!" After minutes of sobbing to herself, she raised her head in silence. She said nothing. Did nothing. The ponies around her were too mortified to even attack the pony, or run away. She stood up slowly, turning her head. But her friends couldn't see her eyes, as her dishuvled bangs covered them. "This..." She mumbled, her horn starting to shimmer. "Never would have happened... it shouldn't have." Her magic began to glow brighter, small stars bouncing off. "But it did... because of you!" Her horn ignited in a large blast of magic, and her friends were thrown back into the wall by it. Twilight made her way to the group of ponies, looking down at them with a dead expression. "But I must preserve you all." They were bleeding out across the floor, and Twilight watched. After minutes of letting the blood pass her hooves, she healed them. One by one, she fixed thier injuries and sent them into the containers. They would heal faster there, anyhow she had told herself. Flying up to her office door, she stared down at the teal glow. Finally.
*
"It didn't have to be this way, girls." Twilight spoke in a hushed voice. She knew it happened all too fast. A part of this room caused her pain, but also comfort. She succeeded. Maybe not tin the way she hoped, but the plan she had worked nonetheless. The darkened room barely could show where she was, but the large containers behind her did. Despite her message being conveyed to the large holders; she did not move her vision from her desk. Why would she? There was no reason to. It wasn't like they were going anywhere. Not for a long time at least... Twilight sighed, brushing her mane back. She stood up to stretch when she walked up the steps to her castle. The basement hadn't come with the crystal tree,and she had to order it to be made in secret. She already knew ahead of time how her friends and allys would react if they knew why she was building a lab. Her hooves clinked against the cold stairs as she frowned.
Clink...clink...clink...clink
She stopped halfway. Don't yell. Don't scream. She had told herself countless times. They won't hear you. It's useless. But despite her warnings even to herself, she turned to the sleeping ponies. They floated gracefully in the holders that confided them from the world. Twilight scowled.
"All you had to do... was agree. We didn't have to do it the rushed, difficult, pathetic way. You just had to open your eyes. Take what I was saying into consideration. You knew I was right. That what I was saying, was true. I suppose it didn't feel right to you though. I understand why in a way. You have families. And friends, other than each other. But this- it was for Equestria. It is- for Equestria. I hope the day you wake up... you see that." She turned from the containers, opening the door to the basement and finally looking down at the ponies before her. "Goodnight girls."
