The Dark Army Rises

Epilogue: The Aftermath

Rainbow Dash had been let out of the hospital after a few days. She looked over at the graveyard. She had to avoid it. She had to wait for her friends. But she wanted to know who died that day. If anypony died.

She had seen Celestia fly in several times, but she never knew what Celestia did in there. It chilled her to think about the pony who had probably died. The one connected to Celestia the most. Rainbow Dash prayed this wasn't true.

4 months later...

Rarity had finally woken up from her coma after months of communication between the others. They all met up at the graveyard and walked in. Rainbow Dash looked around and saw Celestia sitting by a grave near-by. Rainbow Dash pointed this out. They all walked to Celestia.

Celestia had placed a scroll on the ground. Applejack placed a hoof on Celestia.

"Hello, my little ponies," she said, sadness coating every syllable of her words. "The past few months have been dark for all of us, but especially for you five. A problem that has appeared is that with Twilight... gone, there is no pony in Equestria that can hold the Element of Magic. We will have to look. We hope for the best."

They spent the next few hours crying by the graveside. Spike arrived later, as the others left. Celestia still sat by the graveside.

"Hello, Spike," Celestia said. "You know why have called you other than the fact that Twillight has just passed away, right?"

"Yes, ma'am," Spike said, pulling out a roll of paper.

"Take a letter, Spike," Celestia said, trying to lighten the mood by saying it like Twilight used to.

Celestia cleared her throat.

"My dearest and most faithful student," she said. "I am writing my last letter to you. You have shown incredible courage in the past, but four months ago, you showed the most you ever could. You fought alongside your friends against an enemy that even I understood, or had even seen. Yet you stood strong, and fought till the last breath.

It is a shame that you never got to find out more about your friends, or about Ponyville as a whole. I wish to not have to tell you it's darkest secret while you lie in a cold grave, but not everything goes as you planned. Ponyville is special. It once was a normal town, but many years of government thought has made it into a town for those such as Rainbow Dash to run.

It is just a way to run from your past, to hide from haunting memories. All of your friends have secrets. Every single pony here has one. You were brought here to realize that life is more than just Canterlot. More than book. I wanted you to meet ponies who were different. Who had problems in their minds. Rainbow Dash still believes that the Rainbow Factory no longer exists, but in fact, it still functions. I have had to live with a guilt-ridden mind since I took the throne, and I wish that I could forget all of it.

But I cannot. I'm sorry, my dearest student, for never telling you before now. But time has reached the end for you, and you must fade. Spike, end letter."

Spike rolled the paper up and wrapped it with a ribbon. He then put it on the graveside. Celestia and Spike left.

A day later...

Rainbow Dash returned to the grave on her own the next day. She saw the scroll on the ground. She knew that Celestia wrote it, and that it would be rude to just go and read it. But her curiousity got the better of her. She grabbed the letter, sat down, opened it, and began to read...