The Timepony’s Journal

Back in her castle, Twilight Sparkle was pacing back and forth while going over her checklist. She’d received an invitation awhile ago to hold a lecture on cutie mark magic and her unique experiences with it at Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. Now that things seemed to be slowing down, she was comfortable enough to accept it without something in the way. No more disasters, no more monsters, just calm and average for one day.

“Slides?: Twilight asked Spike, her number one assistant.

“Check.” confirmed Spike.

“Note Cards?”

“Check.”

“Train tickets and one night’s luggage?”

“Check and check. Snacks?”

Twilight rolled her eyes and put a gemstone in Spike’s claws.

“Check. We’ve got a few hours before we need to go. Good to be ahead of schedule for once.”

“Whelp, I’m exhausted. I’m gonna go take a nap.”

“But all you did was arrange our luggage for five minutes.”

“Right, incredibly hard work.”

Twilight grumbled as Spike yawned and stretched, walking off to his room. She still had plenty of time but didn’t feel like going into the TARDIS. K9 was still in a back closet, turned off as the technology was too advanced for her to find the on switch. A shame the Doctor didn’t leave a manual, though manuals weren’t really his style. After her meeting with her brother she’d decided to reach out more, but nopony could really comprehend her experiences other than those who’d lived them. The Doctor’s diary was still off to the side, laid down on the coffee table.

Slumping into the chair, she picked up the book with her magic. Flipping through the pages she could see that there was still a lot left to go. Holding the book she started to go over the mail, seeing another letter from her recent penpal. When reaching out Twilight had come into contact with an environmental activist from her short time in UNIT. They’d been going back and forth sending letters to one another, eventually planning to meet up soon. In the meantime she figured she might as well continue reading for now. There was still so much left, but she had a feeling that so much was coming to an end.

Before any of them could step out of the ship proper, the TARDIS was teleported somewhere inside of the grand city. The floors were made of gold and marble, furnished with the most lavish carpets. The whole room was decorated with similar red and gold drapes, flowers and furnishings. Stepping down the carpeted stairs all three of them were surprised to see quite a large welcoming party. They were more akin to a paparazzi than a military force, every one of them wearing some kind of elegant outfit.

“Doctor! What a glorious honour it is to be within your presence.” said an elderly stallion as he approached.

The stallion’s robes were much more regal, suggesting either nobility or some kind of upper class. The Doctor shook his hook cautiously, unsure of the situation.

“Eh, I am known to you and your people?” the Doctor asked, puzzled.

“Oh most certainly. We’ve been following your voyages from planet to planet, age to age. Where are my manors? My name is Valour, the chief elder of Wye Valley.”

“The pleasure is all mine. Tell me, do you perhaps have some equipment I could use? My ship, as you may know, is in a slight state of disrepair.”

“Understatement of the century.” Cosmic scoffed.

“Of course, of course. I’ll give you and your companions a personal guided tour along the way.”

The city was much more grand on the inside than it was on the outside. Not only was it the spitting image of a highly advanced society but they had the technology to prove it. There were entire wings dedicated to new forms of artwork, scripture and the advancement of new technologies. Several detailed paintings of various astronomical phenomena lined the walls. Petunia was unsettled by it and the Doctor could agree. Having the landscapes of former worlds he’d traversed dotted around might have stroked his ego a little, but this was bordering on a dangerous obsession. Everything just felt too perfect.

Finally they entered the R&D wing. While this colony couldn’t rival the TimePonies, they certainly had their hooves in the door. These supplies would be more than sufficient for repairing the TARDIS, maybe even giving it a slight upgrade.

“What do you think, Doctor?” Valour asked.

“It’s quite impressive. I’ve never seen such advanced temporal engineering before.”

“Oh thank you, both I and my people are eternally grateful for your gratitude. Here, this is the quanti-scope. It’s what we’ve used to view windows into the past and the future. We don’t have any crafts to traverse time ourselves, not yet at least. We hope that one day we too can visit the wonderful civilizations of Equus. We’ve even been inspired by their classical designs. I speak for everypony when I say that we’d be honoured to have your intellect on our projects, to help us learn and study as you have.”

“Well I’ll eh, have a think about it, hmm? For now I’d like to consult with my companions in private.”

“Oh of course, of course! Everypony will give you the utmost solitude. Don’t hesitate to contact me personally if you need anything, I’ll be in my office down the hall.”

With that both Valour and the other scientists vacated the room. Since the room was a part of the base for one of the spires, its curved window stretched over half of the room’s circumference. Petunia walked up to it, observing the wide landscape outside.

“A bit eager to please, isn’t he?” quipped Petunia.

“Most certainly. Though I must admit, such a high form of flattery is a refreshing change of pace, don’t you think?”

“You can say that again, they rolled out the red carpet and everything. It’s all a bit… of though.” replied Cosmic.

“Yes, I quite agree.”

For a brief moment Petunia saw a figure out in the sandy valley.

“Doctor, look!” Petunia called out, but by then it was too late.

Whoever it was had scurried back off into the shadows. They weren’t like the residents of the city, cloaked in furs and rags instead of ornamental robes.

“Whatever or whoever it was, it's gone now. Did they look hurt or scared?” Cosmic asked.

“It’s hard to tell from this distance. They were definitely frightened. I think that they were being chased by something.”

“Hmm, I think we better return to Valour. It appears that there’s quite a few questions he has to answer for, eh?”

“Doctor, what about outside? Maybe I can go down there and see what’s up, get more info.” Cosmic suggested.

“Are you sure? The last thing we need is for any of us to fall into any harm.”

“I’ve handled worse, remember? Now c’mon, no time like the present.”

The Doctor was a bit concerned about Cosmic’s attitude. Just yesterday they both agreed to get Petunia home as soon as possibly, no bold exploration or heroics. Sure they had had some fun in Tombstone, but it still felt wrong. Not dwelling on it for long, the three split up. Getting to Valour’s office was a bit more difficult when everypony was fainting over his existence. He had never been thanked so much for the things he’d done on his travels.

“Come in.” Valour replied to the Doctor knocking on his door.

“Ah, Doctor, finding everything well?”

“Yes. We just have a few curiosities to answer, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh anything, anything for you.”

“How long has Wye Valley been around for? It must’ve taken ages for you to set it up.” Petunia asked.

“Oh countless centuries. I’ve overseen a good number of projects myself, so it's hard to keep track of them these days.”

“I bet. How’d all of this get started? I’m guessing that you’ve got a museum full of wizard gadgetry.”

“We used to store the ‘wicked gadgetry’ in the basement, however it’s no longer safe down there.”

“Why not?”

“That is where we store our reactors, the lifeblood of the city. All around it are the large aqueducts which nurture our crops with plenty of freshwater.”

“The lifeblood of the city, you say? I’d certainly enjoy seeing such a marvel of ingenuity. I presume it’s safe if you’re willing to pump and store water around it, hmm?” the Doctor asked.

“Eh, sure. Though I must warn you, some of the lowest levels are unsafe due to constant flooding. I’ll take you to see the plans for it myself.”

“Excellent.”

The Doctor hoped that Cosmic was not in the mentioned lower levels. Hopefully if there were any dangers in the aqueducts, Cosmic would be nowhere near them.

Cosmic continued down the slightly damp concrete tunnel. He’d convinced a few residents to let him look at their gardens, only to sneak over the large hedgewall. The constant echoing of dripping water annoyed Cosmic while he brushed leaves and brambles out of his mane and tail. Fluorescent lamps illuminated the claustrophobic tube. It was clear that the walls were once covered in some kind of beautiful murals, the waters that flooded the system having eroded them to vague blobs long ago. Oddly on closer inspection the walls were not only dry but were covered in a fine layer of dust. Initially it seemed like the water was just shut off temporarily, now it seemed nothing but a few drops had been around for centuries.

Some faded signage indicated that he was directly beneath the agricultural wing. Several rusted pipes lined the ceiling, supposedly to pump the water upwards. Around a corner the wall was illuminated by the orange glow of a fire. Shadows danced across the curved surface, stretching them taller than they really were. Rounding the corner Cosmic not only found the figure Petunia saw, but four others as well. They were akin to cave ponies, dressed in thick layers of rags to maintain warmth. They huddled around the fire as it was the only source of heat down here. Cosmic took a few steps back when they all turned to face him.

“I uh, didn’t mean to disturb you.”

The strange cave ponies winced, backing away from him in fear.

“I’m not here to hurt you, I’m here to help.”

They all scurried off quickly, Cosmic left dazed and confused. Turning around he saw two ponies in military-esque uniform, flashlights affixed to their helmets. Looking down they were each brandishing some kind of gun, pointing it right at him. For a moment Cosmic was pleased to see them, hoping for an explanation. Slowly he started to put the pieces together, not liking where this was going one bit.

The halls began to transition from a slick white to more rough brickwork the further down they went. They stopped two floors above the aqueducts, looking down at the reactor through a large viewing platform. All they could really see from the outside was a tall metal cylinder, the inside being displayed on several security monitors that cycled through dozens of feeds each. The Doctor looked over the feeds, Valour waiting for his approval. He watched for several minutes while also looking over the reactor’s blueprints.

“Might I ask, what is in room D12?”

“I’m sorry?”

“Room D12. All these floors have an even number of rooms in a grid except for floor D, the middle of the complex. D12 is the only marking for the centre of the reactor.”

Valour didn’t outwardly display it but he was certainly more tense.

“That is the core of our reactor, of course. It’s not really safe to be within that area, of course.”

“But would it not be safe to monitor such an area? You monitor the hallway but not the room itself, eh? If it’s safe enough to ignore then surely it’s safe enough for entry.”

Valour thought over his words carefully.

“Are you absolutely sure that you want to see that room?”

The Doctor leaned in and smiled.

“Absolutely.”

“Valour slightly slumped in defeat.”

“Very well. I can take you down into the main reactor room for a limited time.”

Petunia leaned over to the Doctor and whispered to him.

“Doctor, are you sure that this is a good idea?”

“It’s clear that this room is key to understanding the core of the issue.” the Doctor whispered back, smirking at his pun.

Petunia silently groaned as they were led to room D12. The further in they went the more barebones the facility became. There was no decontamination equipment, no radiation monitors, not even a single computer terminal the further to the centre they went. The whole floor was just so empty. Less faded parts of the floor indicated that there were once real mechanisms occupying the space. The entire place was gutted, except for room D12.

In the centre of the room was a large glass pyramid with a bed inside. All controls, monitors and terminals circled around that one small chamber. Looking up, a multitude of wires, pipes and thick cables converged around a much smaller pyramid positioned above the larger counterpart. This structure was the real heart of the city. Several ponies ran around, starting up some kind of machine. The Doctor walked around, somewhat admiring the craftsmanship.

“Most extraordinary, how does it work?”

Both the Doctor and Petunia were restrained by members of the large group. Petunia squirmed but the Doctor stared hard into the eyes of Valour.

“I tried to keep you away, I tried to give you exactly what you wanted. You could’ve just taken the equipment, repaired your ship and left. Petunia would be in her rightful place by now. Instead you just had to send your friend down to the savages, you just had to see the life force extractor.”

“How many of those you call savages have been put through this machine, hmm? How many have had their life drained from their bodies to feed your society?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Of course it matters!”

“We wouldn’t live longer than a week without using them. All those beautiful works of art, all of that technology, even our food would run dry without their life essence. Have you seen this planet? It’s a dead world, a desolate rock. We didn’t settle here by choice, but we made do with what we could. How can you condemn this great artistic and scientific civilization because of a few barbarians?”

“So the rewards are only for those that agree with you, live and think by your standards?”

“No. No, of course not. But if you’re going to oppose us-”

“Oppose you? Indeed I am going to oppose you. Just in the same way that I opposed the Daleks, or any other menaces to the races of the universe!”

“I’m sorry that you have this attitude, Doctor, as it is most unscientific and immoral. You are standing in the way of not only genuine progress but our survival too.”

“Genuine progress, sir? How dare you call your treatment of those ponies progress!”

“They’re hardly ponies, Doctor. They’re not like us.”

“I fail to see the difference.”

“Do you not realise that all progress is based on exploitation?”

“Exploitation indeed! This, Valour, is a protracted murder!”

“We’ve achieved a very great deal merely by the sacrifice of a few savages.”

“The sacrifice of even one soul is far too great! You must put an end to this practice at once.”

Valour sighed and leaned face-forward against a control terminal. He held his head down in shame, clearly wracked by pain and fear. Even the slightest justification for his actions were gone now that they were obviously thriving. They easily could have developed a new way to terraform the surface of this world yet chose to continue their ways. The Doctor both loathed and pitied them at the same time.

“Put him in the machine. He’s different…maybe his sacrifice would be enough to save us somehow.”

The Doctor tried to fight back, but he was still a frail old stallion. He was strapped down, most of his protests muffled through the glass. No matter how hard he struggled he seemed to be locked in. The frame of the pyramid was glowing as the life extractor was activating. The feeling was familiar, though he was much stronger willed the last time he had felt this feeling. Even more than before he was exhausted, hanging onto life by threads. All he could do was lay powerless as it felt as if eternities passed in the blink of an eye.

Cosmic continued running, seeing the shots of plasma rifles ricochet off of the walls. Part of the tunnel pinched into a third of its size a few feet ahead. Luckily he’d gained a lot of ground before crawling his way through the foot thick funnel to the other side. This area was a runoff chamber incase of flooding, a complete dead end. The group he met earlier was cowering in fear, clinging to some kind of pendants buried beneath their rags. They all clung to one another while praying and rubbing the smooth but still jagged metal .

“H-help…us.” one of them whimpered.

“I’ll help you, but you’ll have to trust me. I need one of those pendants, just for a moment. I promise that I’ll give it back.”

There was a quick murmur before the mare who spoke up gave him her pendant. Cosmic could see the flashlights of his assailants shining through the small opening. Right when they started firing Cosmic whipped the pendant out, reflecting their shots back at them. One by one they left the dead end as fast as they could. Cosmic was the last one out, freezing when the two in uniform groaned and clutched their sides. He quickly kicked their weapons away, yet they didn’t even try to reach for them.

“What…did you do to us?”

“A taste of your own medicine. Doesn’t feel so good, does it?”

“The stun rays…hurt?”

Cosmic was going to leave them in the dust, but now he was just confused.

“Of course they do, they’re weapons. Don’t tell me that you’ve been using them for Celestia knows how long and don’t even know what they do to ponies.”

“We just needed to keep the savages away, else they would attack us.”

“Because they attack you, or because you’re afraid that they’ll attack you? These ponies are intelligent, feeling and sentient beings just like you. I mean, look around you. Do you think animals could think up and draw art like on these walls? I’m going to make sure that they’re all okay. Don’t even think about following me unless you’re with us, unless you’re ready to apologise and make up for it. They won’t be so scared of you anymore, nor should you.”

Cosmic walked off, making sure that nopony was injured. He could sense the rebellion brewing already from a mile away. Hopefully the Doctor was doing just fine without him.

All sounds were warped and fuzzy, as if the Doctor were under water. He was too tired to move, too tired to speak, nearly too tired to breathe. Every sap of energy had been drained, yet he still clung to the smallest embers of life. The machine started up again, only this time it was dispensing the energy rather than extracting it. Only the smallest fraction of it was being transferred into Valour. Almost instantly he became younger, revitalised. Valour had likely done this dozens, maybe hundreds of times to maintain his extended life.

He got up and stretched, probably saying something grand or dripping with ego and righteousness. Petunia was by the Doctor’s side keeping him upright. The Doctor could feel his strength slowly dripping back, though still helpless. Valour approached, confirming that he was still alive. At least Valour was relieved, still showing some signs of a conscience.

“Finally, now we can get to work. Take them both to the medibay. Have his vitals closely monitored.”

The Doctor and Petunia were dragged away to the infirmary. Something was announced over the intercom but it was too hard to make out. Something new was happening that this city hadn’t experienced in centuries. The drained TimePony couldn’t dwell on it for too long though, it took all of his focus to keep clinging to life. The Doctor faded in and out of consciousness, going into a deep trance to rest. When he awoke both Cosmic and Petunia were by his side. The Doctor was still weary as they both pulled him into a tight hug.

“Thank goodness you’re alright, we thought we’d lost you.” sniffled Petunia.

“Dear, dear me, I’ve certainly missed quite a good deal. And Cosmic, my dear colt I’m glad to see you again. Perhaps you can bring me up to speed with the situation.”

Cosmic explained what had happened from his perspective. It seemed that Valour hadn’t been completely accurate when describing the methods of their power. There was no fighting but word spread fast. The weight of the decision now laid on everypony’s shoulders rather than those of just one. Both them and the class below were locked in a stalemate, neither side wanting to choose and condemn the other group. The Doctor got up, ripping the velcro straps that held in his vital trackers. He tried to walk on his own but he was still too weak.

“Take it easy. You’re lucky to still be breathing right now.” said Cosmic while catching the Doctor mid-fall.

“But I must help…must assist. The moment is high. T-the moment is nigh. Dear, dear me.”

“Just get your breath back, you’ll be alright.”

Cosmic and Petunia helped him back into bed.

“Tell me, are you both alright? The underbelly of the city is dangerous.”

“We’re fine. I told you, nopony really wanted to hurt each other. I’m alright.”

“Are you really, though? Just days ago you were appalled by my apathy, disgusted that I would so flagrantly endanger those who travel with me. I want to change my ways, yet you’re falling right back into them. Please, be honest with me. I’m still an old fool.”

Cosmic looked away, struggling to keep himself together. Instead he sat down, face in his hooves as he started to cry. The Doctor hobbled along and sat by his side to comfort him. He too was wracked with grief, not taking a moment to fully process what had happened since just after T-Tauri died. None of this felt fair. Petunia wasn’t there but she still did her best to provide some kind of comfort. By the end they were all tired and drained, but at least now they could truly start to move on. Lavender, Shining Star, T-Tauri Star. Their moment of peace was interrupted as Valour burst through the doors. Cosmic quickly got up in defence but Valour was quicker than he looked.

The Doctor didn’t even flinch as Valour grabbed him by the shoulders and slammed him against the wall. This wasn’t the same Valour that he’d met before. It was hard not to notice how deranged he’d become with him up this close. Cosmic struggled to pull him off of him while Petunia looked for something to hit him with. Valour let out a mixture of a scream and a sob, going limp. He broke down crying, suffering a mental breakdown. The Doctor quickly went up to him, looking in his eyes and checking his pulse. The Doctor’s extracted energy was different to the others, thankfully Valour only absorbed a fraction of it.

He could feel it, as if some piece of him was reaching out through Valour. Placing his forehead against Valour's, the Doctor made contact with his mind, reabsorbing the energy that had been stolen from him. No more damage could be done to Valour’s mind but some scars would remain.

“What’s happening to me? I can’t do this anymore, everything I’ve done was meant to be good. With what I’ve done…I don’t deserve to be a leader anymore. Please, help us. Stay here, teach us everything you can so we can be better. We’ll give you the robes of our highest elder, provide all the equipment you desire. Just save us, all of us.”

“Unfortunately I cannot stay forever, you know that. I can assist you temporarily but with this city’s worship of me, nopony would truly be good because they wanted to be good. While the things I have learned may guide you, this ideation would only hamper your progress further. That’s why I believe Cosmic would be the most suitable replacement.”

“What?!” everyone in the room exclaimed.

“But me? What about getting Petunia home and keeping her safe? What about you for Celestia’s sake?!”

“Cosmic Storm, you’ve seen more than either of us could have imagined. You are one of my closest friends, and you have certainly learned more than I. Have. I trust your judgments, as they come from the heart as well as your mind. It will be a challenge to set up these ponies with a new life. You’re quite ready for this task. You already chose to leave once, but I took that choice away from you. To go on as we are would halt our progress just as if I were to stay in this city. I’m proud of you, my colt.”

“Thank you. I can’t thank you enough for everything, even with what we’ve been through. There is one last thing, just before I go.”

“Absolutely anything.”

“Three. Two. ONE!”

The glass pyramid shattered into a million fragments as a series of small explosives detonated. Anything that was left was being smashed to pieces by both cultures of the city. Rivet by rivet, piece by piece the lifeforce extractor was being torn apart. Petunia was busy smashing what she could with a metal bat while Cosmic helped the Doctor flip a table.

“You know my colt, I think that there’s nothing quite as satisfying as destroying evil yourself.”

“I couldn’t agree more!”

It was cathartic as everything was completely demolished. Moments like this were what made it worth leaving Gallophrey, that showed him why good always prevailed. None of them would ever forget this day. The Doctor chuckled as the gleeful carnage continued off into the night.